Piper PA-24 Comanche


The Piper PA-24 Comanche is an American four-seat or six-seat, low-wing, all-metal, light aircraft of semi-monocoque construction with tricycle retractable landing gear. Piper Aircraft designed and developed the Comanche, which first flew on May 24, 1956. Together with the PA-30 and PA-39 Twin Comanche, it made up the core of the Piper Aircraft lineup until 1972, when the production lines for both aircraft were wiped out in a flood.

Design and development

The Comanche is a four-seat, single-engined, low-wing monoplane. It is an all-metal aircraft with a retractable landing gear. Two prototypes were built in 1956 with the first being completed by June 20, 1956. The first production aircraft, powered by a Lycoming O-360-A1A engine, first flew on October 21, 1957. In 1958 it was joined by a higher powered PA-24-250 with a Lycoming O-540-A1A5 engine; this model was originally to be known as the PA-26 but Piper decided to keep the PA-24 designation.
In 1964 the PA-24-400 was introduced. The following year the PA-24-250 was superseded by the PA-24-260, featuring the Lycoming IO-540D or E engine of. The 260 was also available as the Turbo Comanche C with a Rajay turbocharger and was introduced in 1970.
Production of the Comanche ended in 1972 when torrential rains from Hurricane Agnes caused the great Susquehanna River flood of 1972, flooding the manufacturing plant and destroying airframes, parts, and much of the tooling necessary for production. Rather than rebuild the tooling, Piper chose to abandon production of the Comanche and Twin Comanche and continue with two newer designs already in production at Piper's other plant in Vero Beach, Florida: the twin-engined PA-34 Seneca and the PA-28R-200 Arrow.

Variants

Comanche 180

The original version of the Comanche was the PA-24, which featured a carbureted Lycoming O-360-A1A engine, swept tail, laminar flow airfoil, and all-flying stabilator.
The standard fuel capacity of the PA-24-180 was. The flaps were manually actuated, controlled by the same Johnson bar actuator as the Piper Cherokee. The aircraft specifications were for cruise speeds of and fuel burns between 7.5 and 10.5 gph at 55-percent and 75-percent power settings. Full-fuel payload with standard fuel was 715 pounds, with a gross weight of and range with 45-minute reserve of 700 nautical miles.
When new, standard, average-equipped Comanche 180s sold between $17,850 and $21,580. A total of 1,143 were built.

Comanche 250

In 1958 Piper introduced a 250-horsepower version using a Lycoming O-540 engine, giving the PA-24-250 Comanche a top cruise speed of 160 kn. Most 250s had carbureted Lycoming O-540-AIA5 engines, but a small number were fitted out with fuel-injected versions of the same engine. Early Comanche 250s had manually operated flaps and carried of fuel. Auxiliary fuel tanks became available in 1961. Electrically actuated flaps were made standard with the 1962 model year.

Comanche 260

In 1965 the first of four 260-horsepower versions of the Comanche was introduced. They were:
A total of 1,029 airplanes were sold from the Comanche 260 line, including the 260TC.
The 260 had an empty weight of approximately 1,700 pounds and a maximum gross weight of 2,900 pounds. It had four seats, and a -capacity auxiliary fuel system was available as an option. Cruise speed was advertised as 142-161 knots with fuel burn of per hour.
The 260B had an overall length six inches more than the previous models. This was due to a longer propeller spinner, not a longer fuselage. The 260B had a third side window and a provision for six seats. The fifth and sixth seats take up the entire baggage area and will seat smaller adults and is placarded to a total weight of 250 pounds. Typical empty weight was 1728 pounds and gross weight was 3,100 pounds. Fuel burn was per hour and advertised speed was 140-160 knots.
The 260C introduced a new "Tiger Shark" cowling, max gross weight of 3200 pounds, cowl flaps, and an aileron-rudder interconnect. Cruise speed was advertised as 150-161 knots with fuel flow of per hour. To prevent possible aft center of gravity problems due to the increased gross weight and its fifth and sixth seats, the propeller shaft was extended. This moved the center of gravity slightly forward. With a useful load of 1427 pounds it has the largest payload of all of the Comanches except the 400. Often mistaken on the ramp for the 400 model, the slightly longer cowling includes a distinctively longer nose gear door, as compared to the B models and older versions.
Starting in 1970, Piper offered a turbo-normalized variant of the PA-24-260 known as the 260TC with a Lycoming IO-540-R1A5 engine and dual Rajay turbochargers. Twenty-six were produced between 1970 and 1972. Advertised by Piper as a "second throttle", the turbochargers are controlled using a manual wastegate assembly that places an additional handle labeled "boost" next to the throttle handle in the cockpit, effectively creating a secondary throttle. The TC model is certified for flight to 25,000 feet, with an advertised turbo critical altitude of 20,000 feet, giving a maximum true airspeed of 223 mph.

PA-24-300

In 1967 one aircraft was modified with a Lycoming engine for trials. It did not enter production.

PA-24-380

Two prototype aircraft were built in 1961. They were standard Comanche airframes but had Lycoming IO-720-A1A engines with a three-bladed propeller. The design was modified with an even larger engine and produced as the PA-24-400.

Comanche 400

The PA-24-400 Comanche 400 was produced from 1964 to 1966. Only 148 PA-24-400s were built.
The Comanche 400 is powered by the 400-horsepower horizontally opposed eight-cylinder Lycoming IO-720 engine, an engine developed specifically for the model.. There have been cooling problems with the rear cylinders.
Air Show, Germany
The Comanche 400 has a three-bladed propeller and carries of fuel, or with optional extended tanks. Fuel burn was advertised as per hour, at 55%-75% power. The high fuel burn means that it is expensive to operate. The 400 had a typical empty weight of 2,110 pounds and a max gross weight of 3,600 pounds.
Book speeds for the PA-24-400 included a cruising speed of 185 knots and a top speed of 194 knots.
While identical in planform to other PA-24 models, the 400 is structurally strengthened, primarily in the tail, with an extra nose rib in the stabilator and in the vertical fin. The stabilator, vertical fin, and rudder of the 400 share virtually no common parts with the 180, 250, or Comanches.

Twin Comanche

PA-33

In 1967 a single Comanche was modified by Swearingen with a pressurized cabin. The prototype, powered by a 260-hp Lycoming O-540 engine and equipped with Twin Comanche landing gear, was designated the PA-33. First flown on March 11, 1967, the prototype later crashed on takeoff in May 1967 and the project was cancelled.

World records

Max Conrad

In June 1959 Max Conrad flew a Comanche 250 on a record-breaking distance flight in Fédération Aéronautique Internationale C1-D Class, for aircraft between to less than. Having removed the interior seats and replaced them with fuel tanks, Conrad flew nonstop from Casablanca, Morocco to Los Angeles, a distance of. When the aircraft took off from Casablanca, it was heavily overloaded and just cleared the airport fence. The Comanche 250 Max Conrad flew for this flight is now located in the museum at the Liberal, Kansas airport.
On November 24–26, 1959 Conrad flew a Comanche 180 on a distance record flight in FAI C1-C Class for aircraft taking off at weights between to less than ) that still stands: Casablanca to El Paso, Texas non-stop, a distance of, in 56 hours 26 minutes. He set a closed-circuit distance record in the same aircraft on July 4–6 November 1960, flying.

Toku-Hana

In July 1964 Henry Ohye, flying a 1961 PA-24-250, made the first successful trans-Pacific flight from the United States to Japan in a single-engined aircraft. He flew from Los Angeles to Tokyo with stops in Honolulu, Midway, Wake, Guam, and Okinawa.

Myth Too

A 1966 Comanche 260B named Myth Too and registered G-ATOY was owned by the English aviator Sheila Scott. The aircraft, flown by Scott, holds ninety world class light aviation records. It is on public display at the National Museum of Flight, Scotland.

Oldest circumnavigator

The circumnavigation by the oldest pilot on record in 1994 was made by Fred Lasby in a Comanche 260B.

Accidents