Mooney M20C vs Piper 28T Arrow 4

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

Aircraft

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Mission Performance

Stall, approach, cruise, range, ceiling and climb — the higher on the chart, the better, on every axis.

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Mission performance specifications
Specification Mooney M20CPiper 28T Arrow 4
Stall speed 61 kt60 kt
Approach speed 65 kt73 kt
Cruise speed 148 kt172 kt
Range 650 nm695 nm
Service ceiling 17200 ft20000 ft
Rate of climb 1010 fpm940 fpm
Fuel burn 9.5 gph12.0 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.

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.

Mooney M20C Avgas
9.5 gph
Baseline
650 nm range 52 gal usable 15.6 nm/gal $62 fuel/hr 5h 28m endurance
Mooney M20C: 9.5 gallons per hour at cruise, 650 nautical mile published range, 5 hour 28 minute endurance, 15.6 nautical miles per gallon.
Piper 28T Arrow 4 Avgas
12.0 gph
Baseline
695 nm range 77 gal usable 14.3 nm/gal $78 fuel/hr 6h 25m endurance
Piper 28T Arrow 4: 12.0 gallons per hour at cruise, 695 nautical mile published range, 6 hour 25 minute endurance, 14.3 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:
Mooney M20C Avgas
$96 /hr
Baseline
Mooney M20C: $96 per flight hour — fuel $62, maintenance and reserve $34.
Piper 28T Arrow 4 Avgas
$192 /hr
Baseline
Piper 28T Arrow 4: $192 per flight hour — fuel $78, maintenance and reserve $114.
Mooney M20C Piston
$10,710 /yr Baseline
Mooney M20C: $10,710 per year — insurance $2,500, hangar $5,710, annual inspection $2,500.
Piper 28T Arrow 4 Piston
$12,405 /yr Baseline
Piper 28T Arrow 4: $12,405 per year — insurance $3,800, hangar $6,605, annual inspection $2,000.

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
Mooney M20C
4 / 4 seats 52 / 52 gal fuel 638 lb wet payload 950 lb useful 2,575 lb MTOW
Piper 28T Arrow 4
4 / 4 seats 77 / 77 gal fuel 775 lb wet payload 1,237 lb useful 2,900 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.

Mooney M20C
35.0 × 23.2 ft 8.3 ft tall
1× Piston Retractable Unpressurized
Piper 28T Arrow 4
35.4 × 27.3 ft 8.2 ft tall
1× Piston Retractable Unpressurized

Payload-Range Map

Full fuel ← → Max payload

Origin: · two fingers to move map

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