Diamond DA20-A1 Katana vs Piper Tomahawk PA38

Side-by-side specs, range, and real operating costs for up to 5 aircraft.

Aircraft

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Mission Performance

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Values normalised across compared aircraft. Fuel Economy is inverted (lower burn = higher score). See table below for raw figures.

Mission Performance Details

Metric Diamond DA20-A1 Katana Diamond Aircraft Industries Piper Tomahawk PA38 Piper Aircraft, Inc
Stall Speed 41 kts 48 kts
Approach Speed 54 kts 60 kts
Cruise Speed 117 kts 105 kts
Range 450 nm 468 nm
Service Ceiling 14,000 ft 13,000 ft
Rate of Climb 680 fpm 718 fpm
Fuel Burn 4.4 gph 6.5 gph

Flight Profile

Service ceiling, range, and climb rate.

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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.

Fuel Burn & Range

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

Diamond DA20-A1 Katana Avgas
4.4 gph
baseline
450 nm range 20 gal usable 4h 32m endurance 26.6 nm/gal $29 fuel/hr
Diamond DA20-A1 Katana: 4.4 gallons per hour at cruise, 450 nautical mile published range, 4 hour 32 minute endurance, 26.6 nautical miles per gallon.
Piper Tomahawk PA38 Avgas
6.5 gph
+2.1 gph
468 nm range 30 gal usable 4h 36m endurance 16.2 nm/gal $42 fuel/hr
Piper Tomahawk PA38: 6.5 gallons per hour at cruise, 468 nautical mile published range, 4 hour 36 minute endurance, 16.2 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:
Diamond DA20-A1 KatanaAvgas
$74 /hr
Diamond DA20-A1 Katana: $74 per flight hour — fuel $29, maintenance and reserve $45.
Piper Tomahawk PA38Avgas
$55 /hr
Piper Tomahawk PA38: $55 per flight hour — fuel $42, maintenance and reserve $13.
Diamond DA20-A1 Katana Piston
$8,546 /yr
Diamond DA20-A1 Katana: $8,546 per year — insurance $1,500, hangar $5,846, annual inspection $1,200.
Piper Tomahawk PA38 Piston
$4,529 /yr
Piper Tomahawk PA38: $4,529 per year — insurance $889, hangar $2,600, annual inspection $1,040.

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.

190 + 30 lb Occupants
×
1
Diamond DA20-A1 Katana
2 / 2 seats 20 / 20 gal fuel 394 lb wet payload 514 lb useful 1,609 lb MTOW
Piper Tomahawk PA38
2 / 2 seats 30 / 30 gal fuel 362 lb wet payload 542 lb useful 1,670 lb MTOW

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

Dimensions & configuration

Representative planforms, drawn to shared scale.

Diamond DA20-A1 Katana
35.6 × 23.5 ft 6.9 ft tall
1× Piston Fixed Unpressurized
Piper Tomahawk PA38
34.0 × 23.1 ft 9.2 ft tall
1× Piston Fixed Unpressurized

Payload-Range Map

Full fuel ← → Max payload

Origin: · two fingers to move map

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