Aircraft model
PIPER PA-34-200
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Seneca I is the first version of Piper's six-seat light twin, with normally aspirated 200 hp Lycomings turning in opposite directions. It carries six people at 165 knots and has a rear double door that makes loading easy, and it was built as a step up for Cherokee Six owners who wanted a second engine.
It has the least happy reputation of the Seneca line. The controls are heavy, particularly in roll, single-engine performance is modest, and the type accumulated enough handling criticism that Piper substantially revised it for the turbocharged Seneca II in 1975 with a redesigned tail and control system. A Seneca I is therefore cheap relative to later aircraft, and for a buyer that is either an opportunity or a warning depending on how much the handling matters. Counter-rotating propellers mean no critical engine, which is a real benefit.
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Put PIPER PA-34-200 side by side with up to two other models.
- PIPER PA-34-200
What it is
| Seats | 6 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 2 |
| Engine | Lycoming IO-360-A1A / LIO-360-A1A (counter-rotating) |
| Horsepower | 200 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | FAR23 |
| Production start | 1972 |
| Production end | 1974 |
| Endorsements required | complex;multi-engine |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 165 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 700 nm |
| Service ceiling | 18,600 ft |
| Climb rate | 1,360 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 61 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,400 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,478 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 6 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 1,520 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 962 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 4,200 lb |
| Empty weight | 2,680 lb |
| Usable fuel | 93 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 22.4 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $75,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $150,000 |
| 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 | 823 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 172 |
| Median year built | 1972.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 23 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 4 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 133.721 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 23.262 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 45 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 26.163 |
| Airworthiness directives | 7 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 1 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 172 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 172 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 172 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing multi-engine, piston, 2 engines, 7+ seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 3.8 of 101 |
| Severity | 6.3 of 102 |
| Access | 10 of 103 |
| Support | 5.8 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 6.3 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 32.2 out of 506 |
- Accident record: class median 15.87 · 17 models in class.
- Severity: class median 20.42.
- Access: class median 3,096.5.
- Support: class median 132.5.
- Liquidity: class median 23.08.
- 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.