Cessna Skyhawk
| Cessna 172 Skyhawk | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Cessna 172M | |
| Role | Civil utility aircraft |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Cessna Aircraft Company, Reims Aviation (under an agreement) |
| First flight | 12 June 1955 |
| Introduction | 1956 |
| Status | In production |
| Produced | 1956–86, 1998–present |
| Number built | 44,000+ |
| Unit cost |
|
| Developed from | Cessna 170 |
| Variants | T-41 Mescalero |
The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is a four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company. First flown in 1955, more 172s have been built than any other aircraft.
Measured by its longevity and popularity, the Cessna 172 is the most successful aircraft in history. Cessna delivered the first production model in 1956 and as of 2015, the company and its partners had built more than 43,000. The aircraft remains in production today.
The Skyhawk's main competitors have been the Beechcraft Musketeer and Grumman AA-5 series (neither currently in production), the Piper Cherokee, and, more recently, the Diamond DA40 and Cirrus SR22.
The Cessna 172 started life as a tricycle landing gear variant of the taildragger Cessna 170, with a basic level of standard equipment. In January 1955, Cessna flew an improved variant of the Cessna 170, a Continental O-300-A-powered Cessna 170C with larger elevators and a more angular tailfin. Although the variant was tested and certified, Cessna decided to modify it with a tricycle landing gear, and the modified Cessna 170C flew again on 12 June 1955. To reduce the time and cost of certification, the type was added to the Cessna 170 type certificate as the Model 172. Later, the 172 was given its own type certificate, 3A12. The 172 became an overnight sales success, and over 1,400 were built in 1956, its first full year of production.
Early 172s were similar in appearance to the 170s, with the same straight aft fuselage and tall landing gear legs, although the 172 had a straight tailfin while the 170 had a rounded fin and rudder. In 1960, the 172A incorporated revised landing gear and the swept-back tailfin, which is still in use today.
The final aesthetic development, found in the 1963 172D and all later 172 models, was a lowered rear deck allowing an aft window. Cessna advertised this added rear visibility as "Omni-Vision."
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