Cessna 160
| Cessna Model 160 | |
|---|---|
| Role | Light Aircraft |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Cessna |
| First flight | 1962 |
| Retired | 1974 |
| Status | Scrapped |
| Number built | 1 |
The Cessna Model 160 was designed in the early 1960s by United States aircraft manufacturer Cessna as a light, inexpensive four-seater aircraft. It had a Franklin single piston engine for short-to-medium-distance flights. [1] The Franklin was later replaced with a Continental O-300 which deliverd 145 hp, 20 hp more than the Franklin. The Model 160 was supposed to give a savings in production procedures over labor intensive work, but it never really got off to a good start. [2]
Fuselage and wing skins relied on heavy beading for strength and low weight, and the strut-braced constant-chord wings and free-caster nose gear provided simplicity of manufacture. [3]
The flight tests were conducted in 1962 and 1963. In 1962 the Franklin engine (125 hp) took the airplane to 134 mph. Later in 1963 the Continental O-300 engine (145 hp) then in use in the Model 172, was specified for the production Model 160, and would provide a top speed of 143 mph. In a proposed military version--the 160M--a Continental IO-360 of 210 hp would push it to a theoretical 174 mph top speed. [3]
Flight tests in 1962 and 1963 showed the model had promise, but not enough to make the necessary production and tooling adjustments, so the project was eventually abandoned and the company went back to doing things the way they had always been done. The sole prototype hung around until 1974, when it was reportedly scrapped.[4]
Only one prototype was built, sources say with chassis number 643 and tail number N5419E. Further research proved this data wrong. The aircraft that is registered as N5419E, is a Cessna 182R which is till today in use... [5] [6] [7]
See also
References
- ^ "Re: Cessna 160". Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ "Cessna 160?". Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ a b "The Cessnas that got away". Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ Phillips, Edward H: Wings of Cessna, Model 120 to the Citation III, Flying Books, 1986. ISBN 0-911139-05-2
- ^ "FAA Registry - N5419E is Assigned". Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ "N5419E". Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ "Cessna C-182 Skylane N5419E". Retrieved 2008-12-22.