Aeronca 50 Chief

what is it?

The Aeronca Model 50 Chief is an American light plane of the late 1930s. Consumer demand for more comfort, longer range and better instrumentation resulted in its development in 1938, powered by a 50-horsepower (37-kilowatt) Continental, Franklin or Lycoming engine. A 65-horsepower (48-kilowatt) Continental engine powered the Model 65 Super Chief, which was also built in a flight trainer version, the Model TC-65 Defender, with its rear seat positioned nine inches (23 centimeters) higher than the front for better visibility.

🔎How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · 11 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 161 km/htop speed
• seats 1passengers
• size 513 kgmax take-off weight
• built 430made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 88 years ago, in 1938.
• 🚗Wingspan of 11 m: about 2 cars parked nose to tail.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1938

number built

430

role

civil utility aircraft

makers

Aeronca

engines

1× Continental A50

crew

1

passengers

1

length

6.4 m

wingspan

11 m

height

1.9 m

max take-off weight

513 kg

top speed

161 km/h

cruise speed

145 km/h

range

—

ceiling

4,267 m

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.

family