Cessna 172S Skyhawk - FAQ's

for passengers & publics
More pilots over the years have earned their wings in a 172 than any other aircraft in the world - Doug May, the vice-president of piston aircraft at Cessna’s parent company, Textron Aviation.
How many Cessna 172s have been built?
  • Since the first production model in 1956, there have been 43,000 Cessna 172's manufactured around the world, and counting. This makes them the most produced aircraft in history.

How far can the Cessna 172 fly?
  • The modern day 172 Skyhawk's have a 696 nautical mile range with the standard 45 minute reserve running on 55% power at 12,000 ft. This equates to a ground distance of 1,289km's.

How fast does the Cessna fly?
  • The cruising speed of a Cessna 172 Skyhawk is 122 knots with a maximum speed of 163 knots. This equates to a 226 km/h cruising ground speed with a maximum of 302km/h.

How high can you fly in a Cessna 172?
  • Modern Cessna 172's have a maximum altitude of 13,000ft - 15,000ft. Anything over 10,000ft is known as the transition layer, and pilots should not cruise above this altitude. For long haul flights, it's recommended to cruise at 9,500ft and 4,500ft for short flights.

Is the Cessna 172 safe?
  • Put simply, the Cessna 172 fatality rate is 0.56 per 100,000 flight hours. This gives it the lowest fatal accident rate in private aviation. The aggregated private aviation fatality rate sits at 1.3 per 100,000 flight hours; more than double the rate of the 172.

Resource: airshare.com/blog/cessna-172/

Cessna 172S Skyhawk - Specs​

for aviation enthusiast and student pilot reference only, accurate data please refer manufacture POH

Performance:

The modern day Cessna 172's (commonly referred to as the 'Skyhawk') are powered by a 180 hp Lycoming Model IO-360-L2A air cooled, fuel injected engine:
  • Burn Rate: 9.8 Gallons (32.176 litres) per hour
  • Fuel Capacity: 56 Gallons (53 gallon useable fuel)
  • Maximum Cruise Speed: 124 ktas (230 km/h)
  • Maximum Range: 640 nm (1,185 km)
  • Takeoff Distance: 1,630 ft (497 m)
  • Ground Roll: 960 ft (293 m)
  • Landing Distance: 1,335 ft (407 m)
  • Landing Ground Roll: 575 ft (175 m)
  • Service Ceiling: 14,000 ft (4,267 m)
  • Maximum Climb Rate: 730 fpm (223 mpm)
  • Maximum Limit Speed: 163 kias (302 km/h)
  • Stall Speed: 48 kcas (89 km/h)
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Critical Airspeed:

V speeds (kts)
  • Vx = 62 - Best angle of climb 
  • Vx(10) = 56 Best angle of climb (Flaps 10 degree)
  • Vy = 76 - Best rate of climb
  • Vr = 55 - Rotation (Optimal take-off speed)
  • Va = 90 - 105 - Maneuver
  • Vg = 68 - Best Glide (Maximum gliding distance per unit of altitude drop)
  • Vfe = 110/85 - Flaps Extension
  • Vs0 = 40 (Stalling speed, Full flaps - landing config) 
  • Vs1 = 48 (Stalling speed, No flaps - cruise config)
  • Vref = 65 (No flaps) - landing approach speed
  • Vno = 124 Maximum Structural Cruising speed 
  • Vne = 154 - Never exceed