Cessna 335

Overview

The Cessna 335 is an unpressurised, lighter-weight version of the Cessna 340. Marketed briefly between 1979 and 1980, it was intended as a lower-cost alternative for owners who wanted the cabin-class experience and twin-engine security without the maintenance complexity of a pressurisation system.

In the market, the 335 struggled to find buyers. Only 65 were built before Cessna discontinued the model. Most cabin-class buyers preferred to pay the additional cost for the pressurised 340, and budget-conscious twin buyers gravitated to the lighter, less complex Cessna 310 instead. The result is a rare aircraft today: well-built, capable, and meaningfully cheaper than a 340 to acquire and maintain, but with a small support network and a thinner resale market.

Key Features for GA Buyers

• Cabin-class comfort. Features the same airstair door and centre-aisle cabin as the 340, offering a much more professional feel than the 310 at a lower price than its pressurised sibling.
• Reduced complexity. By removing the pressurisation hardware, the aircraft is lighter and simpler to maintain, which translates to a slight increase in useful load over an equivalent 340.
• Turbocharged performance. The Continental TSIO-520-EB engines provide excellent high-altitude performance, even if the occupants must wear supplemental oxygen to utilise it.

Trade-offs

• Oxygen requirement. Because the 335 lacks pressurisation, flying in the teens or flight levels (where the turbocharged engines are most efficient) requires supplemental oxygen for everyone on board.
• Rarity. With only 65 units ever produced, finding a 335 on the market is difficult, and some 335-specific interior parts can be harder to source than the equivalent 340 components.
• Resale market. Most buyers in this class prefer the pressurised 340, which can make the 335 harder to sell despite its lower acquisition cost.

See Also

• Cessna 340 – the pressurised sibling on the same airframe; the canonical version of this generation. Compare
• Cessna 310 – the lighter, earlier Cessna twin from which the 335 fuselage descends. Compare
• Cessna 402 – the larger unpressurised cabin twin in the same Cessna lineage. Compare
• Beech 58 Baron – the Baron’s larger cabin twin and the primary cross-shop in this segment. Compare
• Piper PA-34 Seneca – a more affordable light twin alternative for buyers who can do without the cabin-class fuselage. Compare