The
Piper PA-44 Seminole
is an American twin-engined light aircraft manufactured
by Piper Aircraft.
The PA-44 is a development of
the Piper Cherokee single-engine aircraft and is
primarily used for multi-engine flight training.
The Seminole was built in
1979-82, in 1989-90, and again since 1995.
The first production
Seminoles are equipped with two 180 hp (135 kW) Lycoming
O-360-E1A6D engines. The right hand engine is a Lycoming
LO-360-E1A6D variant, which turns in the opposite
direction to the left hand engine. This feature
eliminates the critical engine and makes the aircraft
more controllable in the event an engine needs to be
shut down or fails. Later production Seminoles
were built with Lycoming O-360-A1H6 engines.
The Seminole was first certified
on March 10, 1978 and introduced as a 1979 model year in
late 1978. Gross weight is 3800 lbs (1723 kg).
The PA-44-180T Turbo
Seminole version was certified on November 29, 1979 and
built between 1981 and 1982. It features two
turbocharged 180 hp (135 kW) Lycoming TO-360-E1A6D
engines, which offer a significant improvement in
performance at high density altitude. The Turbo Seminole
had its take-off gross weight raised to 3925 lb (1780
kg), while the landing weight remained at 3800 lbs (1723
kg).
The PA-44 features a high
T-tail similar to the T-tailed Arrow IV and resembles
the competitive Beechcraft Duchess.
|