Ownership guide
Cessna 182A Skylane
776 registered in the US, built from about 1956 to 1958, 4 seats, most with the Continental O-470. Its Airworthiness Directives, its engines', and what to check before buying one.
The fleet
- Registered in the US
- 776
- Built
- 1956 to 1958
- Half built by
- 1957
- Seats
- 4
- Engine type
- Piston
- Most common engine
- Continental O-470
Engines installed
- Continental O-470753 aircraft (97%) · 20 ADs, 2 with a repeat action
From the FAA aircraft registry, rebuilt daily. Years are those recorded on each registration.
Airworthiness Directives
28 current ADs name the 182A airframe, 2 with a repeat action; 2 more were superseded. Its engines carry 20 more. 9 equipment ADs name the model.
The ones that come back
ADs with a repeat action: an inspection or replacement at an interval, for as long as the AD applies. These are the airworthiness costs an owner keeps paying.
- 2020-21-22Requires inspecting the tailcone and horizontal stabilizer for corrosion and cracks and repairing or replacing damaged parts as necessaryFuselage · AirplaneRepeat actionNov 2, 2020
- 2011-10-09Requires retaining all of the actions from the previous AD and adding steps to the inspection procedures in the previous ADStandard practices structures · AirplaneSupersedes 87-20-03 R2Repeat actionMay 13, 2011
What gets reported
2 Service Difficulty Reports since 2016: a mechanic or operator files one when a part fails or is found defective.
Systems reported most
- Propeller Hub Section1
- Aircraft Fuel Distribution System1
Parts reported most
- Hub, cracked1
- Gascolator, broken1
The latest reports
2021-07-31 · Aircraft Fuel Distribution System · Gascolator, broken
7/31/2021: winds were out of the north west. planning to cross south end of the runway to enter left downwind for runway 36. had dipped below pattern altitude in order to pull up and lose airspeed. the engine completely died about 3/4 mile east of the runway. checked mixture and attempted restart and pitched for best glide (100pmh). pulled in full flaps and turned to land safely on grass runway. o
2017-08-11 · Propeller Hub Section · Hub, cracked
Propeller was brought in for repair, due to red dye leakage. during the course of inspection, a crack was found. the hub is cracked on the rear side of blade socket nr 1. acft eng is a o470-50 with a p ponk conversion, stc sa02092se, which raises the horsepower produced by the eng, the increased horsepower could be a probable cause. definitive cause is unknown. the owner of the propeller has
From the FAA's Service Difficulty Reporting System, refreshed monthly. Counts of what was reported, not failure rates: most of general aviation reports voluntarily, and a busy training fleet reports more than a private one.
Accident record
40 accidents since 2008, 1 fatal (4 people killed in them, a midair counting both aircraft), 0 aircraft destroyed.
What happened
- Loss of engine power (total)10
- Fuel exhaustion6
- Loss of control on ground3
- Part(s) separation from AC3
- Hard landing2
- Loss of control in flight2
Phase of flight
- Landing11
- Approach9
- Enroute8
- Maneuvering4
- Takeoff4
The latest
| Date | Where | What happened | Injuries | NTSB number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-09-29 | Avalon, CA | Landing: Ground collision | None | WPR25LA304 |
| 2025-05-08 | Ocala, FL | Prior to flight: Electrical system malf/failure | Serious | ERA25LA199 |
| 2024-07-10 | Teton village, WY | Landing: Loss of control on ground | None | WPR24LA242 |
| 2024-06-24 | Spokane valley, WA | Enroute: Fuel exhaustion | None | WPR24LA206 |
| 2024-02-22 | Weippe, ID | Initial climb: Part(s) separation from AC | None | WPR24LA098 |
| 2022-11-24 | Durango, CO | Maneuvering: Unknown or undetermined | None | CEN23LA049 |
From the NTSB's aviation accident database, refreshed monthly; accidents only, homebuilts left out. Counts, not rates: nobody publishes how many hours each model flies, and a training fleet flies far more than a private one. Look up any case by its number in the NTSB's CAROL.
What it costs to run
Per hour flown
Per year, flown or not
- Fuel
- $0/hr
- Engine reserve
- $0/hr
- A year
- $0
- All in, per hour
- $0/hr
Everything else is yours to fill in: insurance, hangar and overhaul prices vary too much by pilot, airport and shop for a default to mean anything. Nothing you type leaves this page.
Before you buy one
- Run its N-number through the AD check: every AD that names its airframe and engine, as a checklist to take to the logbooks.
- For each repeat-action AD (2 on the airframe), find the last compliance in the logbooks and when the next one is due.
- Compare the engine's time since overhaul with its maker's published overhaul time, and look for the reason behind any long gap in flying.
- Ask the mechanic doing the pre-buy to look hard at the propeller hub section and for cracked hubs: they are what gets reported most on this model.
- 9 equipment ADs name the 182A (a muffler, a seat belt, a display): find out which of that equipment is installed.
- Check the registration, the airworthiness certificate and the date of the last annual inspection.
- Work out the sales or use tax your state will charge with the aircraft tax calculator.
The rest of the 182 family
Questions
- How many Cessna 182As are registered in the US?
- 776, in the FAA aircraft registry.
- When was the Cessna 182A built?
- From about 1956 to 1958. Half of those registered today were built by 1957.
- What engine does the Cessna 182A have?
- Most have the Continental O-470 (97% of those registered).
- What are common problems with the Cessna 182A?
- In 2 Service Difficulty Reports filed with the FAA since 2016, the systems reported most were propeller hub section, aircraft fuel distribution system, and the part most often reported was a cracked hub.
- How many accidents has the Cessna 182A had?
- 40 in the NTSB's database since 2008, 1 of them fatal. The most common defining event was loss of engine power (total). These are counts, not rates: how many hours the fleet flew is not published.
- How many Airworthiness Directives does the Cessna 182A have?
- 28 current ADs name the 182A airframe, 2 of them with a repeat action, and 20 more name its engines. Whether each applies to one aircraft depends on its serial number and installed equipment.
Figures from the FAA aircraft registry and the FAA's Airworthiness Directives, rebuilt daily. An AD listed for a model is one to read; whether it applies to one aircraft depends on its serial number, equipment and records.