Cessna 150

Cessna · United States · first flew 1957 · light aircraft

The Cessna 150 is a two-seat, strut-braced high-wing trainer and one of the most-produced aircraft in history, the machine on which countless pilots first soloed.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	High-mounted, straight
E — Engines	1 × piston, nose-mounted
F — Fuselage	7.34 m fuselage
T — Tail	Conventional

WEFT is AircraftIQ's four-point recognition method — how it works.

Spot it by:

Strut-braced high wing over a slim two-seat cabin
Fixed tricycle gear with a small nosewheel
Boxy fin, often with the swept dorsal of later models

Look for the tall strut-braced wing, the upright two-seat cabin and the fixed nosewheel. The squared fin with a small swept dorsal extension marks the post-1966 airframes.

Specifications

The Cessna 150 has a length of 7.34 m (24 ft).
It has a wingspan of 10.16 m (33 ft).
Its maximum speed is 202 km/h (126 mph).
Typical crew: 2.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

First flown in 1957 and built until 1977, the 150 replaced the taildragger Cessna 140 with simpler tricycle gear that flattened the learning curve. Nearly 24,000 were produced across its run, making it the fifth most-built aircraft ever.

Variants

Early straight-tail models gave way to the swept fin in the mid-1960s, and the Aerobat added a stronger airframe and aerobatic harnesses. In 1977 the 150 was succeeded by the 152, which swapped to a Lycoming O-235 burning 100LL.

Where you'll see it

A staple of UK flying clubs and PPL training for decades, the 150 and its 152 successor still earn their keep on club flight lines and in early-hours hire fleets, prized for cheap, forgiving handling.

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