5 Starter Aircraft That Are Ideal For New Pilots

For those who are just taking to the skies for the first time, it can be difficult to know which aircraft is the best for you to fly. Undoubtedly, for young pilots, the most important consideration when determining what kind of plane to train on is going to be ease of maneuverability, as well as the plane’s safety and redundancy systems.

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As a result, most flight schools opt for small turboprop planes that are stable and relatively easy to fly. But for those who aspire to be a pilot one day, what aircraft could you most likely see yourself in should you enroll at a flight school? In this article, we’ll take a look at the top five aircraft that are easiest to fly and, as a result, are favored by flight schools.

1 Cessna 172 Skyhawk

Price: $150,000-$300,000

Unquestionably, the Cessna 172 Skyhawk has earned its place among the best trainer aircraft across the globe. According to a survey of flight schools across the globe from Aerocorner, the Cessna 172 is, by and large, the best-selling aircraft of all time.

Photo: VLithium366 | Shutterstock

While originally described as a personal recreational aircraft, it has come to become among the most common trainer aircraft due to its ease of maneuverability and easy recovery in the event of a loss of flight control. Despite first being produced in the 1950s, this aircraft continues to fly off of the assembly lines today.

Originally developed as a more advanced version of the Cessna 170, which debuted in the late 1940s, the plane has since become the backbone of the manufacturer’s offerings. The model was later developed into the Cessna 175 Skylark, which, despite its more advanced features, never proved as popular with pilots and recreational operators as its younger brother.

2 Piper PA-28 Cherokee

Price: $50,000 – $150,000

Flying for the better part of a century, the PA-28 Cherokee is one of the most popular aircraft used for flight training today. Designed to serve a variety of different roles, the aircraft has held true to its design and is used today for air taxi services as well as for personal use.

Photo: Igor Grochev | Shutterstock

Flight schools have repeatedly praised how forgiving the PA-28 is of pilot errors, both while airborne and during taxi, takeoff, and landing. Furthermore, many have praised the aircraft for its extremely less sensitive flight controls, allowing the aircraft to easily maintain altitude without continuous elevator trimming.

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The aircraft also features advanced suspension, cushioning the blow of aircraft landing sharply, as is common among young pilots in training. Naturally, the aircraft is extremely durable, able to survive multiple daily landings that may not be as gentle on the landing gear as one would ideally hope.

3 Cessna 152

Price: $50,000 – $150,000

Although lighter and less stable than the bestselling Cessna 172, the 152 has still served as an important aircraft for first-time pilots. Many flight schools appreciate the aircraft’s flaws and use them as vulnerabilities to help teach student pilots to handle unideal situations.

The aircraft competes with the modern Piper Cub and features a simple cockpit layout with a high wing position. The aircraft, as a result, provides pilots with unobstructed views below them and also uses a gravity-based fuel system, providing even fewer tasks for a young pilot to focus on.

4 Diamond DA40 Star

Price: $400,000 – $600,000

One of the newer entrants on this list, the Diamond DA40 Star, has been one of the most popular aircraft for first-time pilots since its introduction at the end of the 1990s. The light monoplane is made from composite materials and features tricycle landing gear alongside a T-shaped tail.

In 2021, Diamond Aircraft, an Austrian manufacturer, launched an all-electric version of the popular trainer, which could have an impact on the market and beat out American offerings by offering lower fuel costs.

Photo: Renatas Repcinskas | Shutterstock

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The aircraft is well known for being light and easy to control, and flight instructors often conduct gliding exercises by turning off the engines as the plane has a famously low rate of descent. The aircraft is also very unlikely to enter stalls; if it does, these accidents are fairly easy to recover from. The aircraft has an extremely high safety rating and maintains a much stronger record of injuries and fatalities than its competitor aircraft.

5 Cirrus SR22

Price: $400,000 – $600,000

Many argue that the SR22 leads the way in terms of safety, with multiple unique systems such as airbags and a built-in parachute designed specifically to protect pilots. Produced in 2001, the aircraft has only been in the skies for just over 20 years, and so far has made its mark on the industry.

Photo: Tom Boon | Simple Flying

With a keyboard and a simplified console, the cockpit is extremely basic and allows pilots to focus on what’s going on outside the aircraft with minimal distractions. The aircraft is so advanced that owners can even upload flight plans to the plane’s systems via Bluetooth.