Aircraft model
PIPER PA-28R-180
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The original Arrow, introduced in 1967: a Cherokee 180 with retractable landing gear and fuel injection. It was aimed at owners stepping up from a fixed-gear aeroplane and at schools needing a complex trainer for commercial licence candidates, which is still the largest part of its market. It gains about eight knots over a Cherokee 180 and a modest amount of range for a good deal more maintenance.
Its oddity is the automatic gear extension system, which lowers the landing gear on its own when airspeed decays below a threshold. Piper fitted it to prevent gear-up landings; pilots and instructors dislike it because it can extend the gear when you do not want it, and many aircraft have had it disabled under an approved service letter. Find out which state a candidate is in. Beyond that, the ownership issues are the ones every retractable brings — gear rigging, actuator and seal wear, higher insurance, and a required complex endorsement. At 180 hp it is not high-performance, so it is one of the cheapest legitimate routes to complex time. Check the spar AD status as with every PA-28.
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Put PIPER PA-28R-180 side by side with up to two other models.
- PIPER PA-28R-180
What it is
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Lycoming IO-360-B1E |
| Horsepower | 180 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1967 |
| Production end | 1971 |
| Endorsements required | complex |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 128 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 700 nm |
| Service ceiling | 15,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 875 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 55 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,600 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,340 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 4 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 1,120 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 820 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 2,500 lb |
| Empty weight | 1,380 lb |
| Usable fuel | 50 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 10.1 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $45,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $110,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 2,000 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $34,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $48,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 985 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 536 |
| Median year built | 1968.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 21 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 5 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 39.181 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 29.852 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 105 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 19.593 |
| Airworthiness directives | 6 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 536 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 536 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 536 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 3-4 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 4.8 of 101 |
| Severity | 2.4 of 102 |
| Access | 4 of 103 |
| Support | 8.1 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 5 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 24.3 out of 506 |
- Accident record: class median 28.36 · 202 models in class.
- Severity: class median 11.65.
- Access: class median 767.75.
- Support: class median 141.5.
- Liquidity: class median 19.57.
- 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.