Cessna 152 - WikiHQ

The Cessna 152 is an American two-seat, fixed-tricycle-gear, general aviation airplane, used primarily for flight training and personal use. It was based on the earlier Cessna 150 incorporating a number of minor design changes and a slightly more powerful engine with a longer time between overhaul.

The Cessna 152 has been out of production for forty years, but many are still airworthy and are in regular use for flight training.

Development

thumb|right|One of the first Cessna 152s produced, a 1978 model year built in 1977

thumb|1978 Cessna 152

First delivered in 1977 as the 1978 model year, the 152 was a modernization of the proven Cessna 150 design. The 152 was intended to compete with the new Beechcraft Skipper and Piper Tomahawk, both of which were introduced the same year.

As with the 150, the great majority of 152s were built at the Cessna factory in Wichita, Kansas. A number of aircraft were also built by Reims Aviation of France and given the designation F152/FA152.

Production of the 152 was ended in 1985 when Cessna ended production of all of their light aircraft; by that time, a total of 7,584 examples of the 152, including A152 and FA152 Aerobat aerobatic variants, had been built worldwide.

In 1996, the Cessna 152 was certified for operation using 100% ethanol fuel as an alternate to 100LL. This shows that the aircraft is adaptable to alternate and renewable energy sources.

In 2007 Cessna announced that it would build a light-sport successor, designated the Model 162 Skycatcher, although production ended in 2013.

Design

Powerplant

All Cessna 152s were manufactured with a Lycoming O-235 engine which has been in production since 1942. The Lycoming provided not only an increase in engine power over the Cessna 150, but also was more compatible with the newer 100LL low-lead fuel.

The 1978 model has a one piece cowling nose bowl that requires removing the propeller to remove it. The 1979 model introduced a split-nose cowling nose bowl that can be removed without removing the propeller.

Flying controls

thumb|Instrument panel

Dual controls are available as optional equipment on the Cessna 152

STOL kits

The wings can be modified using a number of STOL modification kits, some improving high speed/cruise performance but most concentrating on STOL performance. Horton's STOL kit is one of the better-known of the latter. It involves fitting a more cambered leading edge cuff to increase the maximum coefficient of lift, fitting fences at the aileron/flap intersection and fitting drooped wingtips. Stalls with these modifications are almost off the airspeed indicator, since instrument error is high at high angles of attack.

Other modifications

Other popular modifications include:

Flap gap seals to reduce drag and increase rate of climb.

Variants

thumb|right|A 1978 Cessna 152 landing

thumb|A 1980 A152 Aerobat with its distinctive factory paint scheme

thumb|A 1985 Reims-built F152

thumb|Front view of a Cessna 152

Cessna 152 has only 4 model variants: 152, F152, A152, FA152 (all equipped with the Lycoming O-235):

;152:Two-seat light touring aircraft, fitted with a fixed tricycle landing gear, powered by a Lycoming O-235-L2C piston engine, 6628 built.:

Training

The Cessna 152 is a commonly used flight trainer for aviation schools around the world. This plane is good for its low operating cost, reliability, and forgiving flight characteristics making it a good option for student training.

Flight schools like Sunair aviation use Cessna 152 in their fleets because it's simple and cost effective. Rental planes typically range between $100 and $150 per hour.

Operators

Civilian operators

The 152 is popular with flight training organizations and is also widely operated by private individuals.

Military operators

thumb|right|A 1981 Reims-built FA152 Aerobat

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Argentine National Gendarmerie operated three from 2004.

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Bangladesh Army 5 A152 Aerobat

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Bolivian Air Force – 12 in service as of 1987.

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Botswana Defence Force Air Wing two A152

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Gabonese Air Force one F152

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Lesotho Defence Force one A152

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Mexican Navy operated seven from 1979

Incidents and accidents

On May 9, 1989, a man who had murdered his ex-wife earlier that evening stole a Cessna 152T at gunpoint from an employee at Beverly Municipal Airport. During the flight, which lasted over three hours, Alfred James Hunter III fired a semi-automatic AK-47 rifle at the ground below, buzzed the South Postal Annex in Boston several times, and briefly touched down at Logan International Airport before taking off again. He was arrested when he finally landed with just five minutes' worth of fuel remaining.
On 24 May 2001, a Cessna 152 violated Israeli airspace and was shot down by an IAF AH-64 Apache. Estephan Nicolian, a Lebanese student pilot, was shot down after ignoring repeated warnings by Israeli ATC to turn back. This is one of the two only-known operational air-to-air kills using an AGM-114 Hellfire missile.
On June 24, 2022, a Cessna 152 sustained substantial damage after failing to recover from a spin during training. The aircraft entered the spin at 9,100 ft msl with the wreckage found at 4,590 ft msl. According to flight experience logs, the flight instructor had accumulated only 2 hours of flight experience on learning how to spin the accident airplane.
On 20 August 2024, Cessna 152 (VT-TAJ) aircraft used as a trainer aircraft by Alchemist Aviation lost contact with Jamshedpur Air Traffic Control (ATC) tower around 11:10 am, shortly after taking off from Sonari aerodrome at 10:32 am. An investigation of the incident was launched. On 21 August, search operations were initiated by local authorities, the forest department and an NDRF team. On 22 August, the bodies of instructor pilot Captain Jeet Satru (2,000 hours flying experience) and trainee pilot Shubhrodeep Dutta (80+ hours flying experience) were recovered from the reservoir of Chandil Dam. As of 25 August, the search for the missing airframe was ongoing. A search and rescue team of the Indian Navy has joined the search efforts from Visakhapatnam on 22 August upon request. Eyewitnesses said that the aircraft crashed into the water body itself. The aircraft had 80 litres of fuel and 4 hours and 30 minutes of endurance - the schedule was for 1 hour. However, it was not clear why the Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) did not turn on. The aircraft had a total certified lifespan of 30,000 flight hours, of which only 16,000 hours had been utilized. On 26 August, the 20-member diving and hydrographic survey team of the Eastern Naval Command recovered the aircraft's debris after a 5-day long search operation.

Specifications (Cessna 152)

thumb|right|View of the underside of a Cessna 152

External links

Cessna 150 & 152 page on Airliners.net
"Cessna 152 Aerobat", Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum.
Cessna 150/152 Model History
Cessna 150: The Generic Trainer