Piper Tripacer Aircraft

The Piper Tripacer personal aircraft model PA-22 and its predecessor Piper PA-20 Pacer were built by Piper in the 1950s and 1960s. The Piper PA-20 Pacer was essentially the same as the Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer only the latter had a redesign of the landing gear. The landing gear was changed to a tricycle configuration with a nose wheel replacing the traditional tail wheel. This got the Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer airplane the unflattering nickname "flying milk stool".

The Piper Tripacer personal aircraft model PA-22 and its predecessor Piper PA-20 Pacer are constructed of tube and fabric. They are propeller driven with a single Lycoming engine. They have a wingspan of just over 29 feet and a range of about 500 miles. The runway needed is less than 1200 feet.

Because of the similarity of the Piper PA-20 Pacer to the Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer some of the model PA-22 were rebuilt as a model PA-20. While the modification takes away the "milkstool" look, it reintroduces the visibility problem that the tricycle landing gear was designed to overcome. The production of the Piper Tripacer aircraft ceased in the 1960s and was replaced by the Piper PA-28 Cherokee line of aircraft which is still being produced by Piper. Of the thousands of Piper PA-20 Pacer and Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer aircraft produced, many are still in service.

If you talk to any pilot that have flown or owned a Piper Tripacer aircraft they all talk of this little airplane with fondness. Present owners express the same sentiment. One pilot claims it costs less to run his Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer than to run his car! The Piper Tripacer certainly is one of the most useful and economical ways to fly.