Piper PA-44 Seminole
 Piper PA-44 Seminole. Photo: KGG1951, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
| |
| Make | Piper |
|---|---|
| Model | Piper PA-44 Seminole |
| Type | Training and personal aircraft |
| Country |  United States
|
| First flight | May 1976 |
| Built | 1979–present |
| Number built | 926 (until 2019) |
| Registered in the US | 577 (FAA register, October 30, 2026) |
| Seats | 1, 3 passengers |
| Engine | 2 × Lycoming O-360-E1A6, 180 hp |
| Cruise speed | 187 mph (PA-44-180 Seminole) |
| Range | 915 nmi (PA-44-180 Seminole) |
| Service ceiling | 17,100 ft (PA-44-180 Seminole) |
| Max weight | 3,800 lb (PA-44-180 Seminole) |
| Developed from | Piper Cherokee |
| More aircraft · For sale | |
The Piper PA-44 Seminole is a four-seat, twin-engine light airplane designed and built by Piper Aircraft. With predictable, forgiving handling, it is marketed for and widely used in multi-engine flight training.[1] In the U.S. there are 577 with a valid registration.[2]
History
Developed from the single-engine Cherokee line, the Seminole first flew in May 1976, was announced on February 21, 1978, and was certified by the FAA on March 10, 1978, going on sale as a 1979 model. The turbocharged PA-44-180T Turbo Seminole, with Lycoming TO-360 engines for better high-altitude performance, was certified on November 29, 1979. Piper has built it in three runs: 1979 to 1982, 1989 to 1990, and continuously since 1995. A diesel Seminole DX with DeltaHawk engines was in development in the 2020s.[1]
Design
It is a compact, affordable twin that looks much like the Beechcraft Duchess. Its fuselage, T-tail and wings come from the Piper Arrow IV, it seats four in two rows, and a small baggage compartment behind the rear seats has its own door. It is popular with charter companies and flight schools.[1]
Registered in the United States
The FAA register lists 577 of these airplanes with a valid U.S. registration. Here they are by the model name the FAA uses.[2]
| FAA model name | Registered |
|---|---|
| PA-44-180 | 539 |
| PA-44-180T | 38 |
Specifications (PA-44-180 Seminole)
| Item | PA-44-180 Seminole |
|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
| Passengers / capacity | 3 passengers |
| Length | 27 ft 7+1/4 in |
| Wingspan | 38 ft 7+1/4 in |
| Height | 8 ft 6 in |
| Wing area | 183.8 sq ft |
| Empty weight | 2,354 lb |
| Maximum takeoff weight | 3,800 lb |
| Fuel | 110 USgal, of which 2 USgal are unusable |
| Engine | 2 × Lycoming O-360-E1A6, 180 hp (air-cooled flat four (counter rotating)) |
| Propeller | Hartzell fully-feathering metal constant-speed propellers |
| Maximum speed | 193 mph |
| Cruise speed | 187 mph |
| Stall speed | 68 mph |
| Range | 915 nmi |
| Service ceiling | 17,100 ft |
| Rate of climb | 1,340 ft/min |
Figures as given in the Wikipedia article and its sources.[1]
Photos
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Piper PA-44 Seminole. Photo: Gons, CC BY-SA 4.0 -
Piper PA-44-180 Seminole (C-FLZJ). Photo: Ahunt at English Wikipedia, Public domain -
PA44-180 Piper Seminole C-GPFG. Photo: Durksteel at English Wikipedia, Public domain
All photos are from Wikimedia Commons; click a photo for its full credit and license.
Buying a Piper PA-44 Seminole
Sources
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Wikipedia, "Piper PA-44 Seminole", read November 1, 2026. Airplane Wiki's text is written in its own words; facts are checked against this article and its sources.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Federal Aviation Administration, Releasable Aircraft Database, file dated October 30, 2026. Valid registrations of fixed-wing airplanes whose FAA maker and model names belong to this family. Airplane Wiki uses only counts from this file, never owner names or addresses.