Built of aluminium
The airframe is aluminium: sheet metal over a riveted frame, the way most aircraft have been built since the 1940s.
748 of the model families on this list are built this way, 162,988 aircraft on the register between them; the largest is the Cessna 172 Skyhawk with 20,683, then the Piper PA-28 Cherokee, Warrior, Archer and Arrow (18,618).
Biggest model families aircraft on the register
Cessna 172 Skyhawk20,683Piper PA-28 Cherokee, Warrior, Archer and Arrow18,618Cessna 182 Skylane11,834Cessna 1507,994Piper PA-32 Cherokee Six, Lance and Saratoga3,916Boeing 7372,895Cessna 180 Skywagon2,604Beechcraft A36 Bonanza2,530Piper PA-24 Comanche2,428Cessna 177 Cardinal2,159Cessna 1702,085Cessna 525 CitationJet (CJ series)1,972
The biggest families, as a table
All 748 families with notes where the construction changed
20,683Cessna 172 Skyhawk
11,834Cessna 182 Skylane
7,994Cessna 150
2,895Boeing 737
2,604Cessna 180 Skywagon
2,428Piper PA-24 Comanche
2,159Cessna 177 Cardinal
2,085Cessna 170 · The original 1948 170 had fabric-covered wings; the 170A and 170B are all-metal.
1,839Cessna 140 · Early 120s and 140s have fabric-covered wings; the 140A is all-metal.
1,692Piper PA-46 Malibu, Mirage, Matrix and M-Class · Pressurised cabin.
1,636Cessna 152
1,526Cessna 210 Centurion
1,420Luscombe 8 Silvaire · Early models have fabric-covered wings; the 8E and 8F are all-metal.
1,411Cessna 310
1,372Cessna A185 Skywagon
1,295Beechcraft 58 Baron
1,286Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-5 Traveler, Cheetah and Tiger · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
1,077Beechcraft 35 Bonanza and Debonair · The V-tail Bonanza.
1,017Cessna 208 Caravan
953Van's Aircraft RV-12 · A kit, built by its owner or by the factory as a light sport aircraft.
794Ercoupe 415 · Fabric-covered outer wings on the early ones.
707Cessna 340
660Cessna 120 · Fabric-covered wings on most 120s.
585Boeing 767
581Schweizer SGS 1 gliders (1-26, 1-34, 1-35, 1-36) · The 1-26 has a fabric-covered aft fuselage on early examples.
440Boeing 757
437Cessna 195
432Learjet 45
344Cessna TU206
340Engineering & Research ERCOUPE 415 · Fabric-covered outer wings on the early ones.
333Grumman American Avn. Corp. AA-1 Yankee and Trainer · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
329Bell OH-58
315Gulfstream American Corp AA-5 · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
251Cessna A188 · The Ag Wagon: a crop sprayer with a strengthened aluminium frame.
238Learjet 60
232Cessna A150
220Eclipse Aviation Corp EA500 · Aluminium joined by friction-stir welding rather than rivets.
210Engineering & Research 415 · Fabric-covered outer wings on the early ones.
207Cessna T-310
207American Aviation AA-1 · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
202Cessna 305 · The Bird Dog, the Army's version of the 170.
193Cessna T337
192Boeing 747
184Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8 · Early models have fabric-covered wings; later ones are all-metal.
179American AA-1 · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
176Textron Aviation Inc 700 · The Citation Longitude.
175Cessna 162
174Cessna 402
170Ryan NAVION
167Beechcraft A45 · The T-34 Mentor, the Navy's and Air Force's trainer.
165Alon A-2 · A later Ercoupe.
161Learjet 35
155Douglas DC-3
151Beechcraft 76 Duchess · The Duchess twin.
137Cessna 320
137Lake LA-4
127American AA-5 · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
120Airbus A300
119Learjet 31
118Yakovlev YAK 52 · Metal structure; fabric-covered control surfaces.
117Piper AEROSTAR 601 · The Ted Smith Aerostar.
117Ryan Aeronautical ST3 · The Ryan ST: an aluminium fuselage with fabric-covered wings.
115Temco GC-1
114American General Acft Corp AG5 · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
113Beechcraft 77 Skipper · The Skipper trainer.
111Boeing 717
99Piper PA-36 Pawnee Brave · The Pawnee Brave crop sprayer: all-metal.
83Let L-23 · An all-metal glider.
59Bell 212
58Bell 205
58Forney F-1 · A later Ercoupe.
53Aeroprakt Mfg Sp Z O O A32 · Aluminium structure; the wings are fabric-covered behind the main spar.
50S C Aerostar S A YAK-52 · The Yak-52 built in Romania: metal structure, fabric-covered control surfaces.
48Piper AEROSTAR 600 · The Ted Smith Aerostar.
46Tiger Aircraft Llc AG-5 · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
45Aeroprakt Manufacturing Sp Zoo A22 · Aluminium structure; the wings are fabric-covered behind the main spar.
45Universal GLOBE GC-1B · The Swift.
43Grumman American Avn. Corp. GA-7 · Glued (bonded) aluminium honeycomb rather than rivets.
40Let L 33 · An all-metal glider.
40Yakovlev YAK-55 · Metal structure; fabric-covered control surfaces.
39Mooney M10 · The Cadet, an Ercoupe built by Mooney.
38Let BLANIK L-13 · An all-metal glider.
37Pilatus B-4 · An all-metal glider.
37Yakovlev YAK-50 · Metal structure; fabric-covered control surfaces.
31Bell 214
30Eclipse Aerospace Inc EA500 · Aluminium joined by friction-stir welding rather than rivets.
29Weatherly Aviation Co Inc 620 · A crop sprayer.
27Luscombe 11 · The Sedan: all-metal.
27Thorp T-18 · A kit, built by its owner.
24Piper AEROSTAR 602 · The Ted Smith Aerostar.
23Ryan Aeronautical ST-A · The Ryan ST: an aluminium fuselage with fabric-covered wings.
22I.C.A.-Brasov (Romania) IS-28 · An all-metal glider.
21Bell 222
21Ercoupe G · Fabric-covered outer wings on the early ones.
21Forney 415 · A later Ercoupe.
19Ercoupe E · Fabric-covered outer wings on the early ones.
19Scottish Aviation SERIES 100 · The Jetstream.
19Spartan 7 · The Spartan Executive: all-metal, and polished.
17Aerostar S A YAK-52 · The Yak-52 built in Romania: metal structure, fabric-covered control surfaces.
16Yakovlev YAK 18 · Metal structure; fabric-covered control surfaces.
14Mooney M22 · The pressurised Mustang: all-metal.
13Bell 230
12Bombardier CL-215 · The water bomber.
12Erco 415 · Fabric-covered outer wings on the early ones.
12Weatherly 201 · A crop sprayer.
11Let L-13 · An all-metal glider.
10Aeroprakt America Inc A-22 · Aluminium structure; the wings are fabric-covered behind the main spar.
10Aircoupe F-1 · A later Ercoupe.
10Ryan Aeronautical PT-22 · The Ryan ST: an aluminium fuselage with fabric-covered wings.
10Sc Aerostar Sa YAK-52 · The Yak-52 built in Romania: metal structure, fabric-covered control surfaces.
10Wsk Pzl-Krosno KR-03 · An all-metal glider.
9Camair 480 · A Navion with two engines.
9Ryan Aeronautical ST-A SPECIAL · The Ryan ST: an aluminium fuselage with fabric-covered wings.
9Universal GLOBE GC-1A · The Swift.
8Fpna Llc A-22 · Aluminium structure; the wings are fabric-covered behind the main spar.
8N419Cm Llc VANS RV10 · A kit, built by its owner.
8Temco D-16 · The Twin Navion.
7Antonov AN-2 · Metal structure; fabric-covered wings.
7Luscombe Airplane Corp. PHANTOM 1 · The Phantom of 1934: an all-metal fuselage with fabric-covered wings.
7Reims Aviation S.A. CESSNA F182Q · Built under licence in France.
6Downer REPUBLIC RC-3 · The Seabee amphibian.
6Ford 4 · The Ford Trimotor: corrugated aluminium.
6Pzl-Mielec AN-2 · Metal structure; fabric-covered wings.
6Reims Aviation CESSNA FT337GP · Built under licence in France.
6Schreder HP-11 · An all-metal homebuilt glider.
6Schweizer SGM2 · A motor glider: all-metal.
6Van's Aircraft RV-7 · A kit, built by its owner.
6Van's Aircraft RV-9 · A kit, built by its owner.
5S C Aerostar S A FESTIVAL R40S · The Yak-52 built in Romania: metal structure, fabric-covered control surfaces.
5Aerosport Ltd IKARUS C42E · Aluminium tube structure under fabric and composite shells.
5Aerotechnik L-13 · An all-metal glider.
5Bell P-39 · The Airacobra fighter.
5Ica Brasov IS-29 · An all-metal glider.
5Midget Mustang MM-1 · A kit, built by its owner.
5Raddatz Steven G RV-10 · A kit, built by its owner.
5Reims Aviation S.A. CESSNA F172H · Built under licence in France.
5Schreder HP-14 · An all-metal homebuilt glider.
5Van's Aircraft RV-8 · A kit, built by its owner.
Connections how this material links to the rest of the register
Model families
- Cessna 172 Skyhawk 20,683 registered
- Piper PA-28 Cherokee, Warrior, Archer and Arrow 18,618 registered
- Cessna 182 Skylane 11,834 registered
- Cessna 150 7,994 registered
- Piper PA-32 Cherokee Six, Lance and Saratoga 3,916 registered
- Boeing 737 2,895 registered
- Cessna 180 Skywagon 2,604 registered
- Beechcraft A36 Bonanza 2,530 registered
- Piper PA-24 Comanche 2,428 registered
- Cessna 177 Cardinal 2,159 registered
- Cessna 170 2,085 registered · The original 1948 170 had fabric-covered wings; the 170A and 170B are all-metal.
- Cessna 525 CitationJet (CJ series) 1,972 registered
Makers
- Cessna 72,685 aircraft on the register
- Piper 44,837 aircraft on the register
- Beechcraft 6 aircraft on the register
- Boeing 6,677 aircraft on the register
- Bombardier
- Grumman American Avn. Corp. 1,675 aircraft on the register
- Luscombe 1,472 aircraft on the register
- Embraer 663 aircraft on the register
Other materials
- Composite 231 model families
- Steel tube, wood and fabric 209 model families
- Fabric and wicker 176 model families
- Carbon fibre and plastic 170 model families
- Steel tube and fabric 145 model families
- Aluminium with composite parts 112 model families
- Aluminium tube and fabric 85 model families
- Steel tube and aluminium 58 model families
- Fabric wing and steel frame 52 model families
The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/material/aluminium.json.
The FAA's register does not record construction; this list is written by hand from the makers' descriptions and the type certificate data sheets, which remain the authority for any one model. Connections as data: /graph/material/aluminium.json.
