This 1981 Piper PA-28-236 Is a Strong-Shouldered ‘AircraftForSale’ Top Pick

Today’s Top Pick is a 1981 Piper PA-28-236 Dakota.

Piper rolled out the original PA-28s in part as a response to Cessna’s popular 172. Over the decades, a series of stretches, reshapings, and engine changes transformed that basic airframe into a fleet, including four-place and six-place singles and twins often designed to compete with specific rivals in the GA market. This PA-28-236 is one such example, having arisen from a need to compete with Cessna’s no-nonsense, heavy-lifting 182 Skylane. For pilots who trained in PA-28s or simply prefer low-wing aircraft, this big-engine version of the PA-28 could be an ideal vehicle. For those wondering, the Dakota is the follow-on to the Cherokee 235 Pathfinder, with the addition of the tapered wing.

I recall seeing a photograph of a pilot standing next to a PA-28-236 with a huge pile of luggage, apparently representing the aircraft’s cargo capacity. Indeed, the collection of stuff looked like the typical load for a student heading off to college. I am sorry that I do not recall whether the photo was part of a promotion or flight review article, but either way, the message was clear. This was one of those airplanes that supposedly could lift whatever you could fit through the door. That might be an exaggeration, but these Pipers are good haulers.

This Dakota has 2,860 hours on the airframe, 850 hours on its Lycoming O-540-J3A5D engine and 1,360 hours on its Hartzell propeller. The panel includes a Garmin GTN 650 GPS nav/com, GTX 345 transponder, King KMA 24 audio panel, KX 170B VHS nav/com, FR 86 ADF, KN 62A TSO DME, Century 21 autopilot, ACK 406 ELT with GPS interconnect, Sigtronics SPA-400 4-place TSO intercom, and Davtron M877 digital clock.

Pilots who need a flying utility vehicle to complete their typical mission should consider this brawny 1981 Piper PA-28-236 Dakota, which is available for $219,000 on AircraftForSale.

You can arrange financing of the aircraft through FLYING Finance. For more information, email info@flyingfinance.com.