Engines · piston (reciprocating) · data as of October 9, 2026

Lycoming O-235 series

6,134 aircraft on the U.S. register carry a Lycoming O-235 series engine, rated at about 115 horsepower. The Cessna 152 is the model most often fitted with it (1,545 aircraft). The aircraft carrying it were built between 1945 and 2025.

The FAA records engines by code, usually at the level of a series ("O-320 series") rather than the exact variant; this page gathers every FAA code that reads as Lycoming O-235 series. FAA spelling: 0-235 SERIES.

Fitted to model families

Model families, as a table

	aircraft
Cessna 152	1,545
Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser	878
Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer and Colt	552
Piper PA-38 Tomahawk	409
Bellanca 7 Citabria	318
Champion 7 Citabria and Champ	311
Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1 Yankee and Trainer	305
Piper PA-16 Clipper	252
American Aviation AA-1	198
American AA-1	165
Piper PA-18 Super Cub	165
Beechcraft 77 Skipper	106

Cessna 152 · Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser · Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer and Colt · Piper PA-38 Tomahawk · Bellanca 7 Citabria · Champion 7 Citabria and Champ · Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1 Yankee and Trainer · Piper PA-16 Clipper · American Aviation AA-1 · American AA-1

Where they are owner's state

Texas571California547Florida484Alaska383Washington217Minnesota186North Carolina185Michigan180Oregon179New York166

By state, as a table

	aircraft
Texas	571
California	547
Florida	484
Alaska	383
Washington	217
Minnesota	186
North Carolina	185
Michigan	180
Oregon	179
New York	166

Kind of aircraft

Piston singles6,132 (100%)Helicopters1 (0.0%)Gliders1 (0.0%)

By kind, as a table

	aircraft	share
Piston singles	6,132	100%
Helicopters	1	0.0%
Gliders	1	0.0%

When the aircraft were built by decade

By decade built, as a table

	aircraft
1930	4
1940	1,107
1950	157
1960	759
1970	2,138
1980	668
1990	159
2000	72
2010	16
2020	4

What the FAA has certified, ordered and been told about the Lycoming O-235 series the component layer

The design is held under 1 type certificate (E-223, held by Lycoming Engines). The FAA has issued 13 airworthiness directives (orders that owners must comply with) that name this engine series. Operators and repair shops have filed 20 failure reports with the FAA since 1995, 3 of them in the last ten years.

FAA orders 13 airworthiness directives · newest first

2026-09-142026-17-10 · Reciprocating Engine Cylinder Section · engine

2026-04-082026-04-11 · Engine (Reciprocating) · engine

2024-12-052024-21-02 · Engine (Reciprocating) · engine

2022-08-152022-16-03 · Engine (RECIPROCATING) · engine

2012-03-272012-03-07 · Carburetor · engine

2004-06-252004-10-14 · Crankshaft gear · engine

All orders naming the Lycoming O-235 series

Failure reports 20 since · what operators and shops told the FAA

Failure reports by year, as a table

	reports
98	9
99	2
00	3
02	2
03	1
09	1
10	1
17	1

Parts most often reported as the reports name them

Axle6Cylinder4Fork2Spark Plug2Balance Weight1Coil1Pin1Plug1Support1Tube1

Parts most reported, as a table

	reports
Axle	6
Cylinder	4
Fork	2
Spark Plug	2
Balance Weight	1
Coil	1
Pin	1
Plug	1
Support	1
Tube	1

Latest reports

2017-07-03Coil: failed

2010-02-12Support: misinstalled

2009-05-24Spark Plug: broken

2003-12-05Spark Plug: worn

2002-11-21Cylinder: cracked

Certificates and bulletins

E-223Type certificate held by Lycoming Engines · 43 models listed · revised January 31, 2020

Safety bulletins 4 · advice, not orders

2019-05-02NE-19-08 · Reciprocating Engine Cylinder Section - Lycoming Engines Parallel Valve Cylinders

2014-03-24NE-14-13 · Reciprocating Engine - Cylinder Mounting Studs

2008-09-10NE-06-32R1 · Reciprocating Engine - Crankshaft

2005-09-30NE-05-89 ·

Sources: the FAA's type certificate data sheets, airworthiness directives, supplemental type certificates, special conditions and special airworthiness information bulletins (Dynamic Regulatory System), and the FAA's service difficulty reports. A failure report is what an operator or repair station chose to file; the counts show reporting as much as reliability, and larger and commercial fleets report more. How the systems are grouped.

Connections how this engine series links to the rest of the register

Fitted to

Cessna 152 1,545 with this engine series
Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser 878 with this engine series
Piper PA-22 Tri-Pacer and Colt 552 with this engine series
Piper PA-38 Tomahawk 409 with this engine series
Bellanca 7 Citabria 318 with this engine series
Champion 7 Citabria and Champ 311 with this engine series
Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1 Yankee and Trainer 305 with this engine series
Piper PA-16 Clipper 252 with this engine series

Where they are

Texas 571 of these aircraft
California 547 of these aircraft
Florida 484 of these aircraft
Alaska 383 of these aircraft
Washington 217 of these aircraft

Biggest operators

Wings Over Texas Holdings LLC 52 of these aircraft
Hillsboro Aero Academy LLC 42 of these aircraft
Sunrise Aviation INC 36 of these aircraft
Piper Aircraft INC 16 of these aircraft
Pea-Wayman Flight LLC 14 of these aircraft

Airworthiness

FAA orders naming the Lycoming O-235 series 13 airworthiness directives
Failure reports on the Lycoming O-235 series 20 reports since 1995

Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/engine/lycoming-o-235-series.json.

Aircraft newest certificates first · 6,134

Tail no.	Maker and model	Group	Owner and base	Certificate	Registered	Status
N5254X	Champion 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	2011-05-20	Valid
N4690Z	Piper PA-22-108	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	2011-05-16	Valid
N25775	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Multiple	2011-05-05	Valid
N2403F	Piper PA-38-112	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	2011-05-02	Valid
N43RL	Lohr FURY MARK II	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Washington	Experimental	2011-04-28	Valid
N4155M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2011-04-25	Valid
N2462M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2011-04-22	Valid
N2355A	Piper PA-38-112	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	2011-04-21	Valid
N9461L	American Aviation AA-1A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	2011-04-21	Valid
N6130M	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2011-04-19	Valid
N7770H	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Texas	Standard	2011-04-16	Valid
N7158K	Piper PA-18-105 SPECIAL	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Restricted	2011-04-13	Valid
N3939M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Iowa	Standard	2011-04-07	Valid
N5774H	Piper PA-16	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2011-04-07	Valid
N25525	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2011-03-30	Valid
N53823	Bellanca 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2011-03-30	Valid
N8350V	Champion 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2011-03-22	Valid
N4865Z	Piper PA-22-108	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Indiana	Standard	2011-03-18	Valid
N3338M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2011-03-11	Valid
N45418	Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	2011-03-10	Valid
N5242H	Piper PA-16	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	2011-03-09	Valid
N747WT	Beech 77	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2011-03-03	Valid
N6407L	American Aviation AA-1A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Kansas	Standard	2011-03-02	Valid
N508T	Champion 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	2011-02-24	Valid
N5669H	Piper PA-16	Fixed-wing, single engine	Usaviation.Com LLC Moorestown, New Jersey	Standard	2011-02-24	Valid
N714UC	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Carolina	Standard	2011-02-15	Valid
N3729B	Beech 77	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner West Virginia	Standard	2011-02-14	Valid
N834GT	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Oregon	Standard	2011-02-08	Valid
N49722	Piper AE-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Arizona	Standard	2011-02-03	Valid
N714TJ	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Top 5 Media LLC Santa Maria, California	Standard	2011-01-31	Valid
N243T	Piper PA-18 105	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Dakota	Restricted	2011-01-26	Valid
N2MS	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2011-01-25	Valid
N48033	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Connecticut	Standard	2011-01-25	Valid
N3733C	Beech 77	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	2011-01-19	Valid
N53874	Bellanca 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Delaware	Standard	2011-01-19	Valid
N25340	Piper PA-38-112	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Missouri	Standard	2011-01-18	Valid
N37RG	Gaecke Robert VARI-EZE	Fixed-wing, single engine	Mindspring LLC New Orleans, Louisiana	Experimental	2011-01-12	Valid
N7765H	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	T R C INC Fairbanks, Alaska	Standard	2011-01-12	Valid
N69023	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Georgia	Standard	2011-01-11	Valid
N4417B	Taylorcraft F21B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Iowa	Standard	2011-01-07	Valid
N1477R	Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	2011-01-06	Valid
N78827	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	2011-01-06	Valid
N322WM	Champion 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2011-01-04	Valid
N2770M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Massachusetts	Standard	2011-01-03	Valid
N4707Z	Piper PA-22-108	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	2010-12-27	Valid
N5655H	Piper PA-16	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	2010-12-21	Valid
N2005K	Taylorcraft Aviation Corp. F21	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2010-12-17	Valid
N92736	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	2010-12-17	Valid
N331T	Piper PA-18-105 SPECIAL	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	2010-12-15	Valid
N128BL	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	2010-12-10	Valid
N67542	Beech 77	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Carolina	Standard	2010-12-09	Valid
N2522C	Piper PA-38-112	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	2010-12-08	Valid
N3621M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Connecticut	Standard	2010-12-03	Valid
N9631L	Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	2010-12-02	Valid
N5099Z	Piper PA-22-108	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	2010-11-22	Valid
N68579	Bellanca 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Mississippi	Standard	2010-11-09	Valid
N757RT	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2010-11-08	Valid
N200ZA	Zenair Ltd CH 2000	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2010-10-29	Valid
N8724V	Bellanca 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Vintage Wings Aircraft LLC Centerpoint, Indiana	Standard	2010-10-20	Valid
N270SV	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Oklahoma	Standard	2010-10-18	Valid
N4990Z	Piper PA-22-108	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	2010-10-14	Valid
N9635S	Champion 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2010-10-04	Valid
N6525L	Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Arizona	Standard	2010-09-20	Valid
N3414M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Nebrig & Associates INC Denton, Texas	Standard	2010-09-16	Valid
N1585N	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Tcf Ventures LLC Wilmington, Delaware	Restricted	2010-09-15	Valid
N2305N	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Jcfl LLC Houma, Louisiana	Standard	2010-09-10	Valid
N3684M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Wood Jeannette C Raeford, North Carolina	Standard	2010-09-08	Valid
N5891H	Piper PA-16	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	2010-08-31	Valid
N248T	Piper PA-18-105 SPECIAL	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner South Dakota	Standard	2010-08-30	Valid
N48961	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Sunrise Aviation INC Ormond Beach, Florida	Standard	2010-08-25	Valid
N4931B	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	2010-08-19	Valid
N5365H	Piper PA-16	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2010-08-19	Valid
N6109L	American AA-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Hawaii	Standard	2010-08-17	Valid
N9405L	American Aviation AA-1A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	2010-08-17	Valid
N7785H	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	R&L Enterprises Highland, Utah	Standard	2010-08-13	Valid
N2969M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Aerial Banners North INC Pembroke Pines, Florida	Standard	2010-08-03	Valid
N6565H	Piper J-3	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2010-07-29	Valid
N67410	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Sky Chiefs Aviation LLC Gainesville, Florida	Standard	2010-07-27	Valid
N1114E	Bellanca 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	2010-07-21	Valid
N333SS	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Cumulus Aviation Services LLC Port Orange, Florida	Standard	2010-07-21	Valid
N3517M	Piper PA-12	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2010-07-19	Valid
N31381	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Florida	Standard	2010-07-16	Valid
N7599K	Piper PA-18-105 SPECIAL	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	2010-07-15	Valid
N54JT	Tomlinson John J PRBR SUPR ACE CORBEN	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Experimental	2010-07-12	Valid
N86181	Aeronca 11AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2010-06-24	Valid
N9402L	American Aviation AA-1A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2010-06-24	Valid
N5424Z	Piper PA-22-108	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Rhode Island	Standard	2010-06-22	Valid
N6284L	Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2010-06-16	Valid
N5470Z	Piper PA-22-108	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Missouri	Standard	2010-06-10	Valid
N9509L	American AA-1B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2010-06-10	Valid
N7187C	Cessna A152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nebraska	Standard	2010-06-09	Valid
N34730	Rearwin 175	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	2010-05-26	Valid
N24PS	Severson Scot SUPER SPORT TRAINER	Fixed-wing, single engine	Lewis University Romeoville, Illinois	Experimental	2010-05-25	Valid
N3TT	Theisen DER JAGER D-9	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Experimental	2010-05-21	Valid
N9603U	Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Aviation Business CORP Saint Louis, Missouri	Standard	2010-05-17	Valid
N9949U	Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2010-05-14	Valid
N5486H	Piper PA-18-105 SPECIAL	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	2010-05-03	Valid
N6306N	Champion 7ECA	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	2010-05-03	Valid
N757AY	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2010-05-03	Valid
N757JD	Cessna 152	Fixed-wing, single engine	Suburban Air CORP Castro Valley, California	Standard	2010-04-23	Valid

Source: FAA Civil Aviation Registry, Releasable Aircraft Database (the engine reference table and each aircraft's engine code), October 9, 2026. Horsepower and thrust are the FAA's figures for the series, not for a particular aircraft.