Admin: New aircraft page: history, US registrations (FAA), specifications, photos, sources

2026-11-01T20:40:24Z

New aircraft page: history, US registrations (FAA), specifications, photos, sources

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{{Aircraft infobox
| name = Piper PA-23 Apache and Aztec
| image = 1960PA-23-250.jpg
| caption = Piper PA-23 Apache and Aztec. Photo: FlugKerl2, CC BY-SA 3.0, via [[commons:File:1960PA-23-250.jpg|Wikimedia Commons]]
| make = Piper
| type = Twin-engined light piston utility
| first_flight = 2 March 1952
| produced = 1952–1981
| number_built = 6,976
| faa_registered = 1,290 (FAA register, October 30, 2026)
| seats = 1, 5 passengers
| engine = 2 × Lycoming IO-540-C4B5, 250 hp
| cruise = 172 mph (PA-23-250F, normally aspirated)
| range = 1,519 mi (PA-23-250F, normally aspirated)
| ceiling = 18,950 ft (PA-23-250F, normally aspirated)
| gross_weight = 5,200 lb (PA-23-250F, normally aspirated)
| category = Piston twins
}}

The '''Piper PA-23''', named the '''Apache''' and later the '''Aztec''', is a four- to six-seat, twin-engine light airplane, also used in small numbers by the U.S. Navy and other military forces. It began in the 1950s as the Twin Stinson, designed by the Stinson Aircraft Company, and Piper built it as the Apache and the more powerful Aztec from the 1950s to the 1980s.<ref name="wp"/> In the U.S. there are 1,290 with a valid registration.<ref name="faa"/>

== History ==
The PA-23 was Piper's first twin. Piper inherited the "Twin Stinson" design when it bought the Stinson Division of Consolidated Vultee. The prototype, a four-seat, low-wing, all-metal airplane with a twin tail and two 125 hp Lycoming O-290-D engines, first flew on March 2, 1952. It flew poorly, so Piper redesigned it with a single tail fin, an all-metal rear fuselage and 150 hp Lycoming O-320 engines.<ref name="wp"/>

Piper built 2,047 Apaches, including the 160 hp Apache E, G and H; the five-seat Apache 235 had 235 hp O-540 engines.<ref name="wp"/> The Aztec followed with more power, and the 250 hp PA-23-250 is the most common PA-23 on the U.S. register today.<ref name="wp"/><ref name="faa"/>

== Registered in the United States ==
The FAA register lists '''1,290''' of these airplanes with a valid U.S. registration. Here they are by the model name the FAA uses.<ref name="faa"/>
<div class="aw-wide">
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! FAA model name !! Registered
|-
| PA-23-250 || 879
|-
| PA-23-160 || 186
|-
| PA-23 || 151
|-
| PA-23-150 || 43
|-
| PA-23-235 || 25
|-
| PA-23-250 (6PCLM) || 4
|-
| PA-23-180 || 2
|}
</div>

== Specifications (PA-23-250F, normally aspirated) ==
<div class="aw-wide">
{| class="wikitable"
! Item !! PA-23-250F, normally aspirated
|-
| Crew || 1
|-
| Passengers / capacity || 5 passengers
|-
| Length || 31 ft 2+3/4 in
|-
| Wingspan || 37 ft 2+1/2 in
|-
| Height || 10 ft 4 in
|-
| Wing area || 207.56 sq ft
|-
| Empty weight || 3,180 lb
|-
| Maximum takeoff weight || 5,200 lb
|-
| Fuel || 140 USgal usable fuel (normal), optional extra tanks with 40 USgal
|-
| Engine || 2 × Lycoming IO-540-C4B5, 250 hp (normally aspirated air-cooled flat-six piston engines)
|-
| Propeller || Hartzell HC-E2YK-2RB constant-speed propellers
|-
| Maximum speed || 215 mph
|-
| Cruise speed || 172 mph
|-
| Stall speed || 68 mph
|-
| Never-exceed speed || 277 mph
|-
| Range || 1,519 mi
|-
| Service ceiling || 18,950 ft
|-
| Rate of climb || 1,400 ft/min
|}
</div>
Figures as given in the Wikipedia article and its sources.<ref name="wp"/>

{{Owner notes}}

== Photos ==
<gallery mode="packed" heights="170">
File:Piper PA-23 Apache SI.jpg|Piper PA-23 Apache. Photo: FlugKerl2, CC BY-SA 3.0
File:Apache on floats 2000.jpg|Apache on floats. Photo: FlugKerl2, CC BY-SA 3.0
File:PiperU11A149067atPima.JPG|Piper PA-23 Apache and Aztec. Photo: YSSYguy at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
File:Piper-Geronimo.jpg|Piper Apache with Geronimo Tail. Photo: FlugKerl2, CC BY-SA 3.0
File:Piper PA-23 235 G-ASFF SPK 21.10.65 edited-2.jpg|Piper PA-23 Apache 235 G-ASFF at Liverpool (Speke) Airport in 1967. Photo: RuthAS, CC BY 3.0
File:N6795Y PA-23-250 Piper Aztec.jpg|N6795Y PA-23-250 Piper Aztec aircraft. Photo: KOMRADE DIMITRI, CC BY-SA 4.0
</gallery>
All photos are from [[commons:Main Page|Wikimedia Commons]]; click a photo for its full credit and license.

== Buying a Piper PA-23 Apache and Aztec ==
{{For sale soon}}

== Sources ==
<references>
<ref name="wp">Wikipedia, "[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piper_PA-23 Piper PA-23]", read November 1, 2026. Airplane Wiki's text is written in its own words; facts are checked against this article and its sources.</ref>
<ref name="faa">Federal Aviation Administration, [https://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/aircraft_certification/aircraft_registry/releasable_aircraft_download 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.</ref>
</references>

Piper PA-23 Apache and Aztec - Revision history

Admin: New aircraft page: history, US registrations (FAA), specifications, photos, sources