What is the difference between the Piper Lance and Piper Saratoga?

Both are retractable-gear, 300 hp, six-seat PA-32R variants. The Cherokee Lance (1976–1979) came first; the Lance II in 1978–1979 added a T-tail. In 1980 Piper replaced the Lance with the PA-32R-301 Saratoga SP — same Lycoming IO-540 engine but new tapered wings, conventional tail (reverting from the Lance II T-tail), and refined cabin. Subsequent variants — Turbo Saratoga, Saratoga II HP, Saratoga II TC — refined the panel and cosmetic details through the 2000s.

Is the Piper Saratoga complex and high-performance?

Yes on both. The PA-32R has retractable tricycle gear, a constant-speed propeller, and 300 hp Lycoming IO-540 (normally-aspirated) or TIO-540 (turbocharged). That places every variant comfortably inside both the FAR 61.31 complex and high-performance categories. A school using the type can issue both endorsements on the same airframe alongside the IFR and commercial-pilot training profile.

How many Piper Lances and Saratogas were built?

The PA-32R retractable family — Cherokee Lance, Saratoga SP, Turbo Saratoga, and Saratoga II HP / TC — accounts for roughly 3,500 airframes built between 1976 and 2009. The broader PA-32 family including the fixed-gear Cherokee Six and Saratoga adds several thousand more airframes; FAA registry data combines the family under PA-32 root variants and individual production sub-totals vary across published sources.

Is Piper still building the Saratoga?

No. Piper ended the Saratoga line in 2009 during the GA piston-aircraft slowdown after the 2008 financial crisis. Piper's current single-engine production is the M-class (Meridian / Mirage / Matrix succeeded by the M350 / M500 / M600) and the trainer-end Archer / Arrow / Seminole. Saratoga factory support continues but no new airframes are being built.

Piper Aircraft

PA-32R Saratoga / Lance

Single-engine piston · Complex trainer · 1980s–1990s

discontinued

Photo: FlugKerl2 via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0

Power: 300 hp
Cruise: 167 kt
MTOW: 3,600 lb
Range: 810 nm
Fuel: 100LL avgas

🇺🇸Specs shown in Imperial.

Performance

Cruise speed (Vc)167 kt
Never-exceed speed (Vne)195 kt
Stall (landing config) (Vs0)60 kt
Climb rate1,010 fpm
Service ceiling16,700 ft
Range810 nm
Endurance6 h
Takeoff roll1,183 ft
Landing roll1,612 ft

Weights

MTOW3,600 lb
Empty weight2,178 lb
Useful load1,422 lb
Baggage capacity200 lb

Dimensions

Wingspan36.2 ft
Length27.7 ft
Height8.1 ft
Cabin width49 in

Powerplant

EngineLycoming IO-540-K1G5 — 300 hp · 100LL · 16 gph
Total horsepower300 hp
Primary fuel100LL avgas
Unleaded pathLeaded only — needs G100UL or engine swap

Cockpit & avionics

Cockpit typeanalog
Autopilot commonly availableYes
Typical packages
- Six-pack analog with Bendix/King KX-155 and KFC-200 autopilot— 1976–1990s factory standard
- Avidyne Entegra (Saratoga II HP / TC)— 2000s factory
- Garmin GTN 750 / G500 TXi retrofit— modern retrofit on legacy airframes
Training note
Most PA-32R airframes flying today carry a mix of original analog primary instruments and modern Garmin or Avidyne retrofits. Schools using the type for the FAR 61.31 complex and high-performance endorsements typically operate one airframe rather than a fleet, and benefit from a modern panel for the IFR portion of the training profile.

Certification

RegulatoryFAR Part 23 · EASA CS-23
Certified rolesNormal category — IFR / day / night
IFRYes
Spin approvedNo
Aerobatic-categoryNo
TailwheelNo
Complex (FAR 61.31)Yes
High-performance (FAR 61.31)Yes

Why is the PA-32R Saratoga / Lance popular?

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

Production volume

The PA-32R retractable family — Cherokee Lance, Saratoga SP, Turbo Saratoga, and Saratoga II HP / TC — accounts for roughly 3,500 of the broader PA-32 Cherokee Six family's total production. The fixed-gear PA-32 Cherokee Six / PA-32-260 / PA-32-300 / Saratoga adds several thousand more airframes to the broader PA-32 fleet.

Regulatory fit

Retractable tricycle gear, constant-speed propeller, and 300 hp Lycoming IO-540 / TIO-540 place every PA-32R variant inside the FAR 61.31 complex and high-performance categories. One airframe carries both endorsements alongside the IFR / commercial training profile.

Industry network effects

Piper Owner Society and the broader Cherokee community support the PA-32R family alongside the PA-28 Cherokee, PA-28R Arrow, and Cherokee Six. CFI familiarity with Cherokee-family handling is broad across US Part 141 and Part 61 schools.

Operating economics

Lycoming IO-540 / TIO-540 at 300 hp burns roughly 14 to 18 gph in cruise. Six-seat cabin and 167 to 178 kt cruise place the type in personal-touring and complex / high-performance training rather than ab-initio.

Fuel future-proofing

Lycoming IO-540 and TIO-540 engines are part of the Lycoming family being progressively cleared for G100UL under the FAA EAGLE programme. Operators should track variant-specific G100UL STC eligibility for fleet-modernisation planning.

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 owner-pilots configure the PA-32R in Aviatize as a single airframe with the Lycoming IO-540 / TIO-540 engine modelled as a child component for TBO tracking and a constant-speed-propeller component for overhaul cycles. The retractable-gear maintenance schedule (cycles vs. hours) should be tracked separately. Pilot-currency rules should gate the resource on a current FAR 61.31 complex and high-performance endorsement.

schedulingaircraft maintenancetraining management

Editorial confidence

Medium confidenceLast reviewed 2026-05-26

Variant timeline, engine family, and certification path attributed to FAA TCDS A20SO and the Piper Owner Society. Specific production sub-totals vary across sources because of the family's many variants; the ~3,500 figure covers the retractable PA-32R airframes built between 1976 and 2009.

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 A20SO covers the PA-32R Cherokee Lance, Saratoga, and derivatives.
Primary sourceType Club·Retrieved 2026-05-14
Piper Owner Society
https://piperowner.org/
Piper Owner Society — Saratoga / Lance coverage including ownership and operating context.
Secondary sourceAviatize-internal·Retrieved 2026-05-26
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piper_PA-32
Wikipedia article verified on 2026-05-26. The article covers the broader PA-32 family (fixed-gear Cherokee Six + retractable PA-32R Lance/Saratoga). Confirmed: full PA-32 family ~7,842+ built across all variants 1965-2007 (this entry's 3,500 figure is specifically the PA-32R retract subset); first flight December 6, 1963; first production PA-32-260 Cherokee Six 260 hp; PA-32-300 Cherokee Six 300 hp Lycoming IO-540-K1A5; baseline (fixed-gear Six) cruise 146 kn, max speed 151 kn, range 730 nm, gross 3,400 lb, empty 1,788 lb (this entry's higher values are for the retract PA-32R Saratoga SP variant).
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. Operator lists are intentionally empty rather than speculative.

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