Also, as with the fuel injection system, earlier airplanes can have a turbo added.įor the ultimate in wretched excess, though, the trophy has to go to the Comanche 400. The engine, beefed up to handle the boost pressure, is evidently just as robust as the normally aspirated engine. The drawback to this system, aside from the obvious one of increased workload, was a potential for engine damage should the pilot forget to reduce boost before descending.Ī side benefit of the turbo is that its quieter than the normally aspirated Comanche C. The turbo was a manual Rajay system, which had a second throttle waste gate with which the pilot would manually set boost at altitude. By the time these airplanes were introduced, the popularity of the Comanche was waning, and theyre relatively rare now.Ī turbocharged version of the Comanche C was offered alongside the normally aspirated bird in 1970. The airplane also gained cowl flaps and an aileron-rudder interconnect. The 100-pound rise in gross gave the airplane a hefty 1427-pound useful load. The Comanche C was rolled out in 1969, with further refinements, including another gross weight increase and a distinctive shark nose cowl. Earlier 250-HP airplanes can be upgraded with fuel injection. These and later Comanches can be spotted by the extra cabin window. The big engine and smaller airframe gives these airplanes excellent climb performance, as much as 1500 FPM.ġ966 saw the introduction of the Comanche B, with a fuel-injected 260-HP Lycoming IO-540, a boosted gross weight (now 3100 pounds) and a fuselage stretch of about six inches, which permitted the installation of two more seats. The 1965 Comanches are unusual airplanes, in that they have the earlier fuselage mated to the later, 260-HP engine, albeit with a carburetor. The 180, which did not have a great reputation for load carrying and which was not selling as well as the 250, was dropped altogether. Production of both the 180 and 250 ended after the 1964 model year. Electric flaps replaced the manual ones with the 1962 model year, but many view this as a step backward. In 1961 the gross weight of the 250 was boosted by 100 pounds. In 1961, Piper offered an optional 90-gallon system, which gave the Comanche 180 some seriously long legs: nine hours, provided the load consisted of only the pilot, one passenger, and a little luggage. The original airplane had a 60-gallon fuel system. This persisted for a couple of years after 1960, almost all of the airplanes were delivered with optional toe brakes. In 1950s the general aviation industry still had some quaint ideas about equipment, and the airplanes were equipped with hand brakes. Still, there were some notable improvements over the years. The basic airplane wasnt changed very much during its production run. Piper didnt distinguish between the 180 and 250 in its serial number records, but total production for 1958 was 336, compared to a little under 200 for the J35 Bonanza. The airframe was essentially the same (and, in fact, its possible to upgrade the 180 to the larger engine), though the 250 boasted a significantly higher gross weight: 2800 pounds versus 2550. Flaps were manual, and the gear was a fairly simple electromechanical design. The 180 had a carbureted Lycoming O-360, while the 250 sported a carbureted Lycoming O-540. The first year of production was 1958, and two models were offered, a 180-HP and a 250-HP version. The good news was that the cost was quite a bit lower: average delivered cost of an original Comanche 250 was $7500 less than that of the J35 Bonanza, or about 15 percent. And the company did a creditable job, producing an elegant design with good performance, albeit not quite up there with the Beechcraft. With the Comanche, Piper was aiming high, setting its sights squarely on the original modern business single, the Bonanza. The Comanche boasted a roomy oval-section fuselage, tapered laminar-flow wing and sharp-edged good looks, a far cry from the rest of the line. With the exception of the Apache, everything Piper had produced up until that time was fabric covered, and all save the Tri-Pacer were taildraggers. The Comanche, being a thoroughly modern design, was a real departure for the company. For Piper, it meant moving to more capable airplanes like the Comanche. General aviation was progressing fast, and tube-and-fabric airplanes were giving way to shiny new all-metal monocoque creations. Up until then, it had built airplanes like the PA-22 Tri-Pacer, the woefully underpowered Apache, the Super Cub and the like. In the mid and late 1950s, Piper was rapidly transforming itself.
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