Before you start looking for a plane, it’s important to be clear about what
you’re going to use it for. You might want a used Cirrus SR22, but if your most common
trips are going to be 400 miles or less, then you’d probably do just as well with a used,
lower-cost and lower-upkeep model like an older Mooney M20 that will get you to your 250-mile
destination a little later and with less room, but for pennies on the dollar. With that being said,
let us look at the cheapest airplanes on the used market today.
Cessna 150. When the Cessna 150 was introduced in the 50s,
it was a revolutionary airplane at the time. This airplane gave instructors and students
exactly what they were looking for: an easier-to-fly and land trainer that held
up to a seemingly endless succession of bad student landings. The 150 is a great airplane,
with good visibility for sightseeing, space for a couple of good-sized duffle bags behind the seats,
and enough room to seat two friendly, lean people. There are a lot of 150s out there, too.
The engine in the 150 is the Continental O-200, which produces 100 hp and burns around 7 gph. The
O-200 is relatively cheap to overhaul, and parts are readily available for it. Some early 150s,
like their 172 and 182 relatives, had the straight tail and fastback upper fuselage design, which
some people think looks cool. Later models were slicked out with swept tails and rear windows.
Because they’re so plentiful and offer such modest capability, the 150 is a terrific value.
The cheapest I saw on controller.com is a 1972 model, listed for $16,000 in Moldova. It has
about 13,000 hours on it. Most of the listings in the U.S. start at $35,000. Budget anything
between 25 and $40,000 though, because with the current market, prices can be unpredictable.
Beechcraft Skipper The all-metal Skipper was Beechcraft’s
mid-’70s attempt to create the perfect new trainer to grab market share from Cessna,
which owned the training game at the time. The plane is, as you can see, a low-winger
with a rounded canopy and, the clincher, a T-tail. The Skipper is a great flying airplane,
with terrific control harmony and easy landing manners. The real selling point for many is
the cockpit, which is roomy, nicely appointed, and strangely luxurious looking for a trainer.
The guess at the time is that Beech didn’t know how to design them any other way. The biggest
challenge with buying a skipper might be finding one. Beech built only around 300 of them, and they
don’t show up frequently on the used listings, but when they do, you can get them for around $30,000.
ERCO Ercoupe. This airplane has been around so long, even
before the Second World War. Over the decades, it was in off-and-on production by at least five
different companies, including Mooney, which made a single-straight-tailed version of the Ercoupe
called the Mooney M-10. Overall, more than 5,500 of the planes were produced.
In 1937, Fred Weick designed this plane to be hard to stall, easy to fly, and easy to land.
The plane is all-metal with tricycle gear and, unusually, features two-axis control,
so there’s just pitch and roll, no rudders. This means you can’t slip it as you can do with a
conventional-control bird, but they’re still surprisingly easy to land, even in a slight
crosswind. With a cruise speed of around 90 mph, the 'Coupe isn’t fast, but it is pleasant to fly.
Though there isn’t a lot of shoulder room in its narrow cockpit, you can slide the canopy back in
flight and enjoy the breeze. This plane is not particularly easy to find, but as at the time of
this writing, there is a 1941 model currently listed on controller.com for $28,000. You can
check other sources for more options. Cessna 170/172.
The 170 is, of course, the immediate predecessor of the 172,
and while the 170 is a taildragger, the 172 is a tricycle gear plane, but the two share
so much in common that it is fair to say that they are two sides of the same coin. Still,
despite the similarities, the personalities of the planes are very different. One is a fun,
sporty grass strip time traveler, and the other is a utilitarian jack-of-all-trades that’s equally
at home as a trainer, IFR platform, short-haul transportation plane, or just a weekend fly-thing.
Both have their limitations, but for pilots who don’t need more than they offer,
it’s hard to beat the value of an all-metal, proven, supremely easy-flying four-seater
with great visibility and a heritage that would make any owner proud. Up until 1968, when Cessna
switched to Lycoming power, earlier 172s and all 170s came with a Continental six-cylinder engine.
Cessna discontinued the 170 in 1956, shortly after the introduction of the 172,
which would go on to become the most-produced plane in aviation history with over 50,000
built. The 170 has soldiered on as a beautiful alternative, one that borders on being an
antique but still has a clean, modern look to it that attracted pilots 60-some-odd years ago.
And both planes are quite affordable, in part because of their sheer numbers.
The 170 is not easy to find, but they typically sell for around 45 to $50,000, and for the 172,
I have seen listings for 1960 and 70s models for as low as $60,000, but there are not
many. What you are most likely to find out there is anything between 80 and $100,000.
Luscombe Silvaire 8.
This airplane was designed to compete with the Cessna 140. Luscombe added rear
windows and an open compartment to the previous Luscombe models and began production in 1946.
This airplane features a 15-gallon wing tank, which, with its roughly 5.5 gph fuel burn,
will still keep the plane up in the air for a reasonable length of time. Cruise speed comes
in at around 100 knots. Further improvements in the form of a new 90 hp Continental engine,
better landing gear, and a full electrical system were added in 1948. With full fuel, the Silvaire
can carry about 400 pounds. The narrow landing gear and responsive controls can make it a bit
interesting to land, especially for pilots without a lot of tailwheel time. ( Currently, you can find
this airplane listed for around $40,000 for the early models. They used to sell for 15 to $20,000,
but ever since the pandemic started, airplane prices have gone up by almost 80%.
Piper Cherokee 140. The Piper PA28-140 Cherokee arrived early in 1964
as a replacement for Piper’s high-wing PA20 Colt. The all-metal, low-wing aircraft was primarily
intended for use as a trainer, competing with the Cessna 150. It might not have won that battle,
but it did grab some market share, and for good reason. The entry-level Cherokee 140 has a
reputation for reliability and easy handling. The 140 is powered by the 140hp Lycoming O-320 engine.
The two-seat design was updated just a year later, becoming the 140-4, which could be configured
as a four-seater. The update also bumped the engine on the 140 to 150 hp. The 150-hp version
cruises at 108 knots and will travel a respectable 465 nautical miles. It can haul around 950 pounds
of useful load, a decent figure for a 150-hp airplane, but many owners look at the 140 as
a good-sized two-seater with a large luggage bench in the back. For a nice used 140, the price can be
as low as $35,000, but budget around 40 to $50,000 if you hope to find one in excellent condition.
Stinson 108. The Stinson 108 was built by the Stinson Aircraft
Company in the 1940s and 50s. This airplane features a fabric-covered steel-tube fuselage,
though aftermarket modifiers obtained supplemental type certificates allowing conversion to an
aluminum covering. The four-seat 108 can cruise at more than 110 mph and can operate comfortably
from unimproved strips, though its short-field performance with the stock Franklin 165-hp engine
isn’t as sprightly as some of its competitors. Still, the 108 packs an impressive useful load
of 1,100 pounds, and it has proven a popular plane among float and ski operators in the bush,
with many remarking how much better-looking the 108 is when it’s airborne, on skis, or floats.
Many 108s have been modified with larger or non-Franklin engines, and a good number have been
"metalized" with sheet metal instead of fabric over the original tube-built fuselage. With its
ability to carry four FAA-sized passengers, full fuel, and a good amount of cargo on top of that,
the 108 arguably competes with the Cessna 182 and Piper 235, two planes that are popular and command
much higher prices than the 108. You can find nice 108s for anywhere from around $75,000 upwards.
Mooney M20s. The speed of this airplane made it desirable,
and it holds its value strongly. The M20C Ranger and the M20E Chaparral (or Super 21) models can be
acquired at bargain prices if you look around. The Chaparral is a particularly attractive airplane.
With its 200-hp Lycoming engine, the plane is a reliable 160-knot cruiser with a good useful load
(around 1,000 pounds) and a decent range (around 600 nm). These planes are somewhat cozy in front
and tight in the back. But for pilots who fly most often solo or with one passenger,
they work beautifully. The least you can get any M20 currently is about $80,000 and it's rare.
Many of the listings are around 100 to $150,000, even go as high as 250, and for that,
you can get a nice airplane, sometimes with mods, and sometimes with a newly overhauled engine.
There are few or no high-performance used planes that can compete in terms of value,
cost of ownership, and operating costs with a good older Mooney.
Aeronca Champion. This little taildragger, which was
a direct competitor to the J-3 Cub for a time, is in some ways a better airplane than the Cub.
Like the J-3, it’s got tandem-configured seating, but unlike the Cub, a solo pilot in a Champ
sits in the front seat, so visibility while taxiing is good. The Champ is considerably
easier to land than the J-3. Though it feels heavier on the controls than the J-3,
the Champ requires a bit less attention than the J-3 while offering the same terrific
view downward. For those folks who want a Cub and who haven’t flown a Champ, I’d highly recommend
begging for a ride in one if you can. Champions don’t often show up on the used market,
but when they do, be prepared to pay about $35,000 or more if you want to get your hands on one.
Before you decide to buy any of the planes listed here, first, remember
that buying an airplane is only part of the cost of owning a plane. How much fuel it burns
and how expensive it will be to maintain are equally important factors to consider.
Also, consider how readily available the parts are. Finally, consider the condition of the
plane you are buying. If you were to get a plane with unknown or unrevealed problems,
you could spend some money on getting it into perfect condition. The engine and prop are a
critical part of that calculation. The flip side is that if you’re willing to fly a plane with
older paint and a less-than-chic interior, you could save a huge percentage of the purchase price
because of factors not directly related to the flyability or mechanical soundness of the plane.