Piper PA-24 Comanche

On 24 May 1956 Piper flew the prototype of a new single-engine four-seat cabin monoplane that it designated initially Piper PA-24 Comanche, but which later became known as the PA-24-180 Comanche. A cantilever low-wing monoplane of all-metal construction, this very clean looking aircraft had such features as retractable tricycle landing gear, an all-moving tailplane and a 134kW Avco Lycoming O-360-A1A engine. The first production aircraft was flown on 21 October 1957, and from the outset it was available in four versions, the Standard with basic essential equipment, the Custom, Super Custom and AutoFlite having progressively more sophisticated equipment, the last of them introducing a two-axis autopilot.

The very convincing capability of the PA-24-180 Comanche was demonstrated at an early date by American pilot Max Conrad in establishing FAI-accredited world class distance records of 11211.83km in a straight line and 11138.72km in a closed circuit during 1959 and 1960 respectively, and in flying a PA-24-250 Comanche in 1959 over a straight-line distance of 12341.26km; these records remained unbroken in 1983. Mentioned in these records is the PA-24-250 Comanche which soon supplemented the PA-24-180 (1,143 built) and while basically similar differed by having the 186kW O-540-A1A engine; this variant was built to a total of 2,537. This was followed in 1964 by the PA-24-260 Comanche with a 194kW version of the O-540 engine, and this model was used by the UK's Sheila Scott between 18 May and 20 June 1966 to establish a new round-the-world class speed record, covering a distance of 46759km.

Last of the single-engine Comanches was the PA-24T-260 Turbo Comanche which introduced an IO-540 engine with a Rayjay turbo-charger to give considerably improved performance, and when production of the PA-24-260s ended in 1973 a total of 1,028 had been built, giving a Comanche grand total of 4,708.