Summary PA-28 Cherokee remains in production after 65 years with almost 33,000 deliveries. The Cherokee family evolved with engine variations, turbocharging, and more. The low-cost design and low wing of the PA-28 Cherokee enhanced ground handling.
The Piper Aircraft designed and developed the Piper PA-28 Cherokee light private/utility aircraft in the late 1950s. Designed for personal transport, flight training, and air taxi use, the PA-28 Cherokee took to the skies for the first time in January 1960. The first PA-28 received its Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) type certification in 1960 and entered service the same year.
Sixty-five years and nearly 33,000 deliveries later, the type remains in production today. The PA-28 family of aircraft are all-metal structures powered by single-piston engines and low-mounted wings. The unpressurized cabin limits the speed and altitude that the aircraft can achieve.
However, the utility of the aircraft lies in its design, accessibility, and maintainability. The Piper Cherokee family has evolved tremendously over the years as the company created many variations, including varying engines, turbocharging, retractable landing gear, constant-speed propeller, and stretched fuselage. Nonetheless, the all-metal airframe of the 1950s paved the way for the entire line of Piper models to follow.
The company designed and developed several aircraft from the late 1940s to the 1950s. The Piper PA-28 Cherokee Capacity : Four people (including one pi.