PA-42 Cheyenne III

The Piper PA-42 Cheyenne III is a twin-engined seven- to ten-seat corporate aircraft produced by the US-American manufacturer Piper Aircraft Corporation.

The idea behind the Cheyenne III was fairly straightforward; take the Cheyenne II and make the fuselage almost nine feet longer, give it five feet more wingspan, with bigger engines, and top it off with a trendy T-tail. It would be able to hold up to eleven, have a max cruise of 290 knots and reach 33,000 feet for 1,500 miles of range. More of a winner is always better.

The engines would remain P&W PT6A turbines, but they would be the –41 versions with 100 more shaft horsepower than the –28’s of the Cheyenne II. More importantly, the engine would be flat-rated at 720 shp to about 16,000 feet, versus a max rating of 850 shp in Beech’s Super King Air, leaving the Cheyenne III some extra breathing room for high-and-hot performance.