When was the Cessna 170 built?

The Cessna 170 was built from 1948 to 1956 in three main variants: the original 1948 170 with fabric-covered wings, the 170A from 1949 with the new all-metal tapered wing, and the 170B from 1952 onwards with para-lift slotted flaps and revised dihedral. Total production was approximately 5,174 airframes. Production ended when Cessna replaced the type with the tricycle-gear 172 in 1956.

What is the difference between the Cessna 170 and the Cessna 172?

The 170 is a tailwheel (conventional gear) airplane; the 172 is tricycle-gear. The two share the same six-cylinder Continental O-300 powerplant and a closely related fuselage. Cessna introduced the 172 in 1956 as a tricycle-gear evolution of the 170 because the post-war pilot market was moving rapidly toward tricycle gear; the 172 went on to become the most-produced civil airplane in history while the 170 became a sought-after vintage classic.

Is the Cessna 170 a good tailwheel trainer?

Many operators use the 170 for the FAA tailwheel endorsement per 14 CFR 61.31(i), and the International Cessna 170 Association maintains active support for owners and clubs that operate the type. The airframe gives a representative conventional-gear experience without the complexity of higher-performance tailwheel types. Schools should weigh the type's vintage status — fabric on the original variant, leaded-fuel-only Continental O-300, no documented G100UL STC for the engine family — against the lower acquisition cost relative to a current-production tailwheel.

How much does a Cessna 170 cost?

Used-market prices commonly range from roughly 45,000 USD for an honest 1948 fabric-wing airframe through 110,000 USD or more for a sorted 170B with modern panel and recent overhauls. Pricing varies substantially with engine time, fabric vs. metal wing variant, paint, retrofits, and condition. The 170B carries the broadest market and the highest typical valuations.

Cessna (Textron Aviation)

170

Single-engine piston · Trainer and personal aircraft · Pre-1980 classic

discontinued

Photo: John Karns via Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

Power: 145 hp
Cruise: 105 kt
MTOW: 2,200 lb
Range: 530 nm
Fuel: 100LL avgas

🇺🇸Specs shown in Imperial.

Performance

Cruise speed (Vc)105 kt
Never-exceed speed (Vne)140 kt
Stall (landing config) (Vs0)43 kt
Climb rate690 fpm
Service ceiling15,500 ft
Range530 nm
Endurance5 h
Takeoff roll650 ft
Landing roll500 ft

Weights

MTOW2,200 lb
Empty weight1,205 lb
Useful load940 lb
Baggage capacity120 lb

Dimensions

Wingspan36 ft
Length25 ft
Height6.5 ft
Cabin width38 in

Powerplant

EngineContinental O-300-A — 145 hp · 100LL · 8 gph
Total horsepower145 hp
Primary fuel100LL avgas
Unleaded pathLeaded only — needs G100UL or engine swap

Cockpit & avionics

Cockpit typeanalog
Autopilot commonly availableNo
Typical packages
- Six-pack analog (period-original)— 1948–1956 factory
- Garmin G5 / Aspen Evolution retrofit— common modern retrofit
Training note
Most 170s flying today carry a mix of period-original analog instruments and modern retrofits — a Garmin G5, Aspen Evolution PFD/MFD, or ADS-B Out via a Garmin GTX 335 are common. Schools deploying the type for tailwheel endorsements typically keep the panel period-correct to focus syllabus attention on conventional-gear technique rather than glass-panel scan.

Certification

RegulatoryCAR 3 (FAA Part 23 predecessor)
Certified rolesNormal category · Utility category (within reduced weight envelope)
IFRNo
Spin approvedYes
Aerobatic-categoryNo
TailwheelYes
Complex (FAR 61.31)No
High-performance (FAR 61.31)No

Why is the 170 popular?

Structured popularity-driver evidence. Each axis below carries one factual statement; we don't grade, the facts speak.

Production volume

Approximately 5,174 Cessna 170s were built between 1948 and 1956 across the original 170, 170A, and 170B variants. The fleet remains material on the FAA registry as a vintage tailwheel and is the direct lineage predecessor of the 172.

Pedagogy and handling

Conventional gear and the Continental O-300 six-cylinder give the type a classic tailwheel pedagogy environment — the airframe is widely used for tailwheel endorsements and as a backcountry / fly-in trainer where conventional-gear handling is the syllabus focus.

Parts and MRO ecosystem

Long-running International Cessna 170 Association supports owners with shared maintenance practice, vendor referrals, and STC awareness; airframe and engine parts remain available through Textron Aviation legacy support and aftermarket suppliers.

Fuel future-proofing

Continental O-300-A is a leaded-fuel-only powerplant under the current FAA EAGLE / California UNL94 transition guidance. Operators planning beyond 2030 should track the G100UL STC list for this engine family or budget for an engine replacement programme.

Before you buy more aircraft

The next airframe is rarely the highest-leverage move.

Flight school revenue is a function of three things — utilisation, dispatch reliability, and student progression — that multiply rather than add. Most schools running below 850 hours per aircraft per year have hidden capacity worth more than the next purchase, already paid for and sitting on the ramp.

Read: Why buying more aircraft probably won't grow your school

Operations

Record hours, no profit

Where margin actually leaks when the schedule looks full.

Strategy

The three hurdles to profitability

The structural barriers most expansion plans miss.

How flight schools track this aircraft in Aviatize

Schools or clubs operating a 170 typically configure it in Aviatize as a single-airframe vintage / tailwheel resource. The Continental O-300-A engine and propeller should be modelled as child components with overhaul-reserve tracking against the published TBO. Pilot-currency rules should gate the resource on a current tailwheel endorsement so the booking engine surfaces the airframe only to qualified pilots.

schedulingaircraft maintenancetraining management

Editorial confidence

Medium confidenceLast reviewed 2026-05-26

Variant timeline, engine, and certification path well-attributed to FAA TCDS A-799 and the type-club. Specific cruise / fuel-burn / weight figures are POH-typical bands rather than POH-confirmed for any specific airframe; treat numbers as illustrative.

Sources

Primary sources are POH / TCDS / manufacturer pages; derived sources record where Aviatize editorial synthesis is layered on top.

Primary sourceFAA TCDS·Retrieved 2026-05-14
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
https://drs.faa.gov/browse/TCDS
FAA Type Certificate Data Sheet A-799 covers the Cessna 170, 170A, and 170B.
Primary sourceType Club·Retrieved 2026-05-14
International Cessna 170 Association
https://www.cessna170.org/
Type club covering ownership, maintenance, and operating practice for Cessna 170 owners.
Secondary sourceAviatize-internal·Retrieved 2026-05-26
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cessna_170
Wikipedia article verified on 2026-05-26. Confirmed: 5,174 built; manufactured 1948-1956; first flight June 1, 1948; developed into the Cessna 172; length 24 ft 11.5 in; wingspan 36 ft; height 6 ft 7 in; empty weight 1,205 lb; gross 2,200 lb; fuel 42 US gal; Continental C145-2 air-cooled flat-six 145 hp; max speed 120 kn; cruise 100 kn; stall 45 kn; endurance over 4.5 hours; service ceiling 15,500 ft; rate of climb 690 fpm.
Editorial synthesisAviatize-internal·Retrieved 2026-05-14
Aviatize editorial
Entry authored by Aviatize from accumulated industry knowledge cross-referenced against the primary sources cited above.

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Discontinued

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Photos & credits: each thumbnail opens that aircraft’s page, where the photographer and licence are credited under the hero image.

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