The story
The Cheyenne started as Piper's Pressurized Navajo with a pair of Pratt & Whitney PT6 turboprops in place of the piston engines. The result was a fast, pressurized cabin twin for business flyers, with fuel tanks on the wingtips and a top speed of over 280 knots. Piper built 823 PA-31T Cheyennes before the line ended in the mid-1980s.
The Cheyenne line grew in two directions: the stretched Cheyenne IIXL with 750-horsepower engines, and the all-new PA-42 Cheyenne III and IV.
Quick answers
How do you identify a PA-31T Cheyenne?
Low-wing Piper twin with turboprop engines, a conventional tail and fuel tanks on the wingtips. It looks like a Navajo with slim turbine nacelles; the T-tailed Cheyenne is the bigger PA-42 Cheyenne III.
What does a PA-31T Cheyenne sound like?
Twin PT6A — familiar turboprop whistle in a Piper airframe.
How fast is the PA-31T Cheyenne?
Top speed is 283 kts.
How many passengers does the PA-31T Cheyenne carry?
Up to 6. A typical layout is 4-6 passengers.
How far can the PA-31T Cheyenne fly?
Range is about 1,480 nmi.
How big is the PA-31T Cheyenne?
It is 34 ft 8 in long and 42 ft 8 in across the wings.
When did the PA-31T Cheyenne first fly?
Its first flight was in 1969.
How many PA-31T Cheyennes have been built?
823 (all PA-31T versions) built.
How rare is a PA-31T Cheyenne in Bogey?
UNCOMMON. Not rare, but not every day either. Worth looking up for. Your first PA-31T Cheyenne catch is worth 50 points.
