Page 8 - Volume 20 Number 8

SPECIFICATIONSPiper PA-42-720 Cheyenne IIIPowerplantsPratt & Whitney Canada PT6A- 41, 720 shpSeats9-11Fuel560 usable gallonsPerformanceCertified ceiling33,000 ft.Single-engine ceiling18,200 ft.Max. cruise speed290 ktsStall speed87 ktsTakeoff distance (50 ft. obstacle)3,230 ft.Landing distance (50 ft. obstacle)3,017 ft.Max. range (w/reserve)2,240 nmClimb rate-2 engines2,236 fpmClimb rate-1 engine531 fpmWeightsRamp11,285 lbMTOW11,200 lbZero Fuel9,150 lbLanding10,330 lbEmpty6,389 std., 7,118 as testedUseful load4,896 std., 4,167 as testedDimensionsWingspan47.67 ft.Height14.75 ft.Length43.39 ft.Cabin length218 in.Cabin width49 in.Cabin height51.4 in.Baggage800 lbThe Cheyenne III, and its suc- cessor, the IIIA, is a good airplane, and had times been better, its fortunes would have risen with its capabilities. The smaller Chey- ennes had established an enviable reputation as fast, good-value business transports. The T-tailed PA-42 was an even-better rendition of Piper’s formula.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 with6 • TWIN & TURBINEa 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.A Purposeful PresenceAs it appeared in early 1980, the PA-42-720 Cheyenne III conveyed an impressive ramp image. It has a long and lean look, with a huge tail and pencil-slim nacelles extending almost half the length of the fuselage. The horizontal tail spans nearly 22 feet and the maingear is 19 feet wide.Some 88 Cheyenne IIIs were delivered before an engine change to the PT6A-61 created the Cheyenne IIIA in 1984. Power rating remained 720 shp, but with even more enhanced altitude performance.(Continued on page 8) AUGUST 2016