Cessna 172 Skyhawk vs Cessna Skylane 182

Side-by-side specs, range, and operating costs.

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Dimensions & configuration

Representative planforms, drawn to shared scale.

Cessna 172 Skyhawk
36.1 × 27.2 ft 8.9 ft tall
1× Piston Fixed Unpressurized
Cessna Skylane 182
36.0 × 29.0 ft 9.3 ft tall
1× Piston Fixed Unpressurized

Flight Profile

Service ceiling, range, and climb rate.

Tap legend to isolate

Arc represents the climb-cruise-descent profile based on published service ceiling and range. Climb rate annotated on ascent. FL180 (18,000 ft) shown for reference.

Mission Performance

Stall, approach, cruise, range, ceiling and climb: best values are at the top.

Mission performance specifications
Specification Cessna 172 SkyhawkCessna Skylane 182
Stall speed 53 kt51 kt
Approach speed 61 kt70 kt
Cruise speed 124 kt145 kt
Range 640 nm930 nm
Service ceiling 14000 ft18100 ft
Rate of climb 730 fpm924 fpm
Fuel burn 9.0 gph13.0 gph

Each axis is scaled independently across the compared aircraft and printed in its own units; every vertex sits at the published figure. Higher is better on all axes: Stall, Approach and Fuel Burn are inverted (lower = higher). A missing figure breaks the line at that axis.

Fuel Burn & Range

Range, endurance, and what the fuel costs by the hour.

Cessna 172 Skyhawk Avgas
9.0 gph
Baseline
640 nm range 13.8 nm/gal 53 gal usable $58 fuel/hr 5h 53m endurance
Cessna 172 Skyhawk: 9.0 gallons per hour at cruise, 640 nautical mile published range, 5 hour 53 minute endurance, 13.8 nautical miles per gallon.
Cessna Skylane 182 Avgas
13.0 gph
Baseline
930 nm range 11.2 nm/gal 87 gal usable $84 fuel/hr 6h 41m endurance
Cessna Skylane 182: 13.0 gallons per hour at cruise, 930 nautical mile published range, 6 hour 41 minute endurance, 11.2 nautical miles per gallon.
Avgas range each cell = 1 hr of cruise · width scales with speed

Bars show published still-air range. Endurance is usable fuel divided by the published cruise burn. Estimates only. Always verify against the POH.

Runway Performance

Density altitude adjusted estimates

Outside Air Temp
0°F57°F115°F
Field Elevation
SL4,0008,000 ft
Density Altitude

Takeoff over 50 ft obstacle

Landing ground roll

Base distance DA penalty
Scale: 6,000 ft

FAA 10%/1,000 ft DA rule of thumb (FAA-H-8083-25B). Turboprops and jets are less sensitive in practice. Always verify against the POH.

Estimated Operating Costs

Scale:
Cessna 172 Skyhawk Avgas
$125 /hr
Baseline
Cessna 172 Skyhawk: $125 per flight hour — fuel $58, maintenance and reserve $67.
Cessna Skylane 182 Avgas
$140 /hr
Baseline
Cessna Skylane 182: $140 per flight hour — fuel $84, maintenance and reserve $56.
Cessna 172 Skyhawk Piston
$11,400 /yr Baseline
Cessna 172 Skyhawk: $11,400 per year — insurance $2,500, hangar $6,900, annual inspection $2,000.
Cessna Skylane 182 Piston
$14,238 /yr Baseline
Cessna Skylane 182: $14,238 per year — insurance $4,700, hangar $7,038, annual inspection $2,500.

Estimates only. Costs vary by location, pilot profile, and market conditions. See individual aircraft pages for source notes.

Capability & limits

Each bar stacks your selected occupants against full fuel and the aircraft's useful-load limit (the black line). The open gap between them is spare payload. Add an occupant and the gap closes; once it's gone, fuel has to give.

lb

+ lb / pax

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Cessna 172 Skyhawk
4 / 4 seats 53 / 53 gal fuel 577 lb wet payload 895 lb useful 2,550 lb MTOW
Cessna Skylane 182
4 / 4 seats 87 / 87 gal fuel 664 lb wet payload 1,186 lb useful 3,100 lb MTOW

Occupants at 190 + 30 lb each. Fuel at 6.7 lb/gal jet-A, 6.0 lb/gal avgas.

Payload-Range Map

Origin: · two fingers to move map

lb

+ lb / pax

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1

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