Aircraft model
PIPER PA-28-236
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Dakota, introduced in 1979: a tapered-wing Cherokee airframe with a 235 hp six-cylinder Lycoming. It is the best-performing fixed-gear PA-28 by a clear margin — 144 knots, over 1,100 fpm of climb, and a 1,390 lb useful load that takes four adults, full 72-gallon tanks and baggage all at once. Very few four-seat aeroplanes at any price do that.
It is the low-wing answer to a Cessna 182 and a fair match for it: slightly faster, slightly less load, and without the 182's nose-heavy landing characteristic. The costs are a big carburetted Lycoming burning 13-14 gallons an hour and an expensive six-cylinder overhaul. Production was short, so they are less common than Archers and command a premium. The standing PA-28 wing spar airworthiness directive applies and should be verified. It is a genuinely good aeroplane that gets overlooked because it sits between the better-known Archer and the retractable Arrow, which makes it reasonable value.
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Put PIPER PA-28-236 side by side with up to two other models.
- PIPER PA-28-236
What it is
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Lycoming O-540-J3A5D |
| Horsepower | 235 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1979 |
| Production end | 1994 |
| Endorsements required | high-performance |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 144 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 800 nm |
| Service ceiling | 17,500 ft |
| Climb rate | 1,110 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 53 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,216 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,725 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 1,390 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 958 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 3,000 lb |
| Empty weight | 1,610 lb |
| Usable fuel | 72 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 13.2 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $90,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $225,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 2,000 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $45,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $64,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 641 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 480 |
| Median year built | 1979.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 11 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 4 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 22.921 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 22.922 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 125 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 26.043 |
| Airworthiness directives | 5 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 480 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 480 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 480 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 3-4 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 7.9 of 101 |
| Severity | 0.7 of 102 |
| Access | 5 of 103 |
| Support | 7.8 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 8.8 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 30.2 out of 506 |
- Accident record: class median 32.28 · 202 models in class.
- Severity: class median 12.5.
- Access: class median 775.
- Support: class median 147.5.
- Liquidity: class median 19.9.
- Each of the five categories places the model within its peer class, from 0 (the worst of the class) to 10 (the best): a position among comparable models, not a grade. The overall score is the sum of the categories shown that are scored, out of 10 for each (50 when all five are); it is given only when at least 4 of the five are scored, and it can be set against another model's only when both are in the same peer class and scored on the same categories.