Cessna 425

The Cessna 425, originally known as Corsair and later Conquest I, is a pressurized turboprop airplane, certified for eight occupants but usually configured to seat six.

History

According to The Aviation Consumer, in the late 1970s, the King Air was on the market and because of its level of performance, was causing some Cessna owners to switch from their current Cessna to the Beechcraft, due to the added power it had without a very high price increase. Cessna did have the Cessna 441 Conquest as an upgrade for people currently with the Cessna 421 model; however, the price jump was simply too high, along with the loss of piloting ease. This caused owners to start leaving the Cessna line, preferring instead the C90 Beech. Cessna did not want to lose customers to the competition, so in 1980 they introduced the first Cessna 425 Corsair. It was essentially a redesigned version of the 421, powered by two 450 hp Pratt & Whitney PT6 engines. The fuel capacity of this aircraft was increased by 1072 pounds as well as the maximum takeoff weigh, by 750 pounds. "The result was an $875,000 pressurized twin-turboprop that could fly 15 knots to 20 knots faster than the C90, cruise 250 miles farther with four passengers aboard and burn 15-percent less fuel. It also costs $200,000 less to buy". "The 425 probably is the simplest of all turboprops to transition to. Thus the nickname 'baby carriage'".