Aircraft model
PIPER PA-39
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The PA-39 is the Twin Comanche C/R, the final version with counter-rotating propellers. That change removes the critical engine entirely, which matters more on this aeroplane than on most because the Twin Comanche's single-engine performance with only 160 hp a side is marginal and its accident record in engine-failure training was poor.
It keeps everything that made the Twin Comanche admired: 170 knots on about 16 gallons an hour total, which is remarkable efficiency for a twin and means it goes as fast as much larger aircraft on half the fuel. The problems are parts — Piper ended production in 1972 and support now runs through specialists and the owners' association — and the fact that marginal single-engine performance still demands precise airspeed discipline even without a critical engine. A well-maintained one with an engaged owner network is excellent.
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Put PIPER PA-39 side by side with up to two other models.
- PIPER PA-39
What it is
| Seats | 6 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | tricycle |
| Engines | 2 |
| Engine | Lycoming IO-320-B1A / LIO-320-B1A (counter-rotating) |
| Horsepower | 160 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1970 |
| Production end | 1972 |
| Endorsements required | complex;multi-engine |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 170 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 950 nm |
| Service ceiling | 18,600 ft |
| Climb rate | 1,460 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 63 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 1,530 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 1,530 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 6 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 1,425 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 885 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 3,725 lb |
| Empty weight | 2,300 lb |
| Usable fuel | 90 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 17.9 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $90,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $230,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 2,000 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $30,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $42,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 143 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 82 |
| Median year built | 1970.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 2 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 24.39 · thin base (low)1 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 24.39 · thin base (low)2 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 18 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 21.95 · thin base (low)3 |
| Airworthiness directives | 5 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | low |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 82 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 82 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 82 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing multi-engine, piston, 2 engines, 5-6 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | —1 |
| Severity | —2 |
| Access | 0.9 of 103 |
| Support | 6.6 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 5.6 of 105 |
- Accident record: class median 22.1 · 57 models in class.
- Severity: class median 25.
- Access: class median 2,924.5.
- Support: class median 57.
- Liquidity: class median 21.42.
- 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.