Piper Vagabond vs Taylorcraft BC

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

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Dimensions & configuration

Representative planforms, drawn to shared scale.

Piper Vagabond
29.3 × 18.8 ft 6.4 ft tall
1× Piston Conventional Unpressurized
Taylorcraft BC
36.0 × 22.0 ft 6.8 ft tall
1× Piston Conventional 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 Piper VagabondTaylorcraft BC
Stall speed 39 kt30 kt
Approach speed 43 kt50 kt
Cruise speed 78 kt83 kt
Range 220 nm174 nm
Service ceiling 10000 ft12500 ft
Rate of climb 530 fpm500 fpm
Fuel burn 4.5 gph4.5 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.

Piper Vagabond Avgas
4.5 gph
Baseline
220 nm range 17.3 nm/gal 12 gal usable $29 fuel/hr 2h 39m endurance
Piper Vagabond: 4.5 gallons per hour at cruise, 220 nautical mile published range, 2 hour 39 minute endurance, 17.3 nautical miles per gallon.
Taylorcraft BC Avgas
4.5 gph
Baseline
174 nm range 18.4 nm/gal 18 gal usable $29 fuel/hr 4h 00m endurance
Taylorcraft BC: 4.5 gallons per hour at cruise, 174 nautical mile published range, 4 hour 0 minute endurance, 18.4 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:
Piper Vagabond Avgas
$66 /hr
Baseline
Piper Vagabond: $66 per flight hour — fuel $29, maintenance and reserve $37.
Taylorcraft BC Avgas
$66 /hr
Baseline
Taylorcraft BC: $66 per flight hour — fuel $29, maintenance and reserve $37.
Piper Vagabond Piston
$5,409 /yr Baseline
Piper Vagabond: $5,409 per year — insurance withheld, hangar $4,209, annual inspection $1,200.
Taylorcraft BC Piston
$3,361 /yr Baseline
Taylorcraft BC: $3,361 per year — insurance $650, hangar $840, annual inspection $1,871.

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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Piper Vagabond
2 / 2 seats 12 / 12 gal fuel 448 lb wet payload 520 lb useful 1,150 lb MTOW
Taylorcraft BC
2 / 2 seats 18 / 18 gal fuel 332 lb wet payload 440 lb useful 1,200 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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