The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is a four-seat, single-engine, high-wing fixed-wing aircraft. First flown in 1955 and still in production, more Cessna 172s have been built than any other mass-produced light aircraft in history.
The Cessna 172 started life as a tricycle landing gear variant of the taildragger Cessna 170, with a basic level of standard equipment. The first production models were delivered in 1956. An overnight sales success, over 1,400 were built in 1956, its first full year of production. As of 2008, more than 43,000 had been built.
In December 4, 1958 Robert Timm and John Cook took off from McCarran Airfield, Las Vegas, NV in N9172B. Sixty-four days, 22 hours, 19 minutes and 5 seconds later, they landed back at McCarran Airfield on February 4, 1959.
The flight was part of a fund raising effort for the Damon Runyon Cancer Fund. Food and water were transferred by matching speeds with a chase car on a straight stretch of road in the desert, and hoisting the supplies aboard with a rope and bucket. Fuel was taken on by hoisting a hose from a fuel truck up to the aircraft.
About this Aircraft
This aircraft was donated to the Museum of Flying by the Santa Monica Police Department and was used as an aerial observation platform. This Cessna was bought new by the Santa Monica Police department in 1973 and converted into an aerial platform. The plane was retired in 2012 after 39 years of service.
Specifications
General
- Length: 27 ft 2 in (8.28 m)
- Wingspan: 36 ft 1 in (11.00 m)
- Height: 8 ft 11 in (2.72 m)
- Empty weight: 1,691 lb (767 kg)
- Gross weight: 2,450 lb (1,111 kg)
Performance
- Cruise speed: 122 kn (140 mph; 226 km/h)
- Stall speed: 47 kn (54 mph; 87 km/h) (power off, flaps down)
- Range: 696 nm (801 mi; 1,289 km) with 45 minute reserve, 55% Power, at 12,000 ft
- Service ceiling: 13,500 ft (4,100 m)