Piper PA-23-250 Aztec (five-seat)

The first Aztec is a different airplane from the one the name usually means. In 1959 Piper took the Apache airframe, replaced its four-cylinder 160 hp Lycomings with carbureted six-cylinder 250 hp O-540s, swapped the elevator for a Comanche stabilator, doubled the fuel to 144 gallons and raised the gross weight to 4,800 lb. What came out had a fifth seat, a round short nose, and — for the first time on this type certificate — genuine two-engine performance: AOPA puts it at 1,650 fpm of climb and a 21,000 ft service ceiling, against the 160 hp Apache's 1,050 fpm and 17,000 ft.

It was an immediate commercial success and it lasted two years. The Aztec B of 1962 added the long nose with its second baggage compartment, the sixth seat and the emergency exit that made it legal, a modular instrument panel, and eventually fuel injection and a higher gross weight. Everything the market remembers about the Aztec came from the B onward, which is exactly why the 1960–61 airplane is easy to buy by accident: the listings say "Aztec" and the specifications a buyer finds online describe a later, heavier, six-seat airplane.

The PA-23-235 Apache 235, built in 1962 only and to 118 eligible serial numbers, belongs here rather than with the Apache despite its name. The certificate is explicit — "Same as Model PA-23-250, 5 PCLM, except for powerplants" — and every airframe number matches this page: five seats, 4,800 lb, 144 gallons, stabilator. It is an Aztec with 235 hp carbureted engines and an Apache badge, and it is the rarest airplane on TCDS 1A10.

For what these airplanes are worth today, and for anything to do with cruise or range, go to a current market source and a flight manual. This page will not guess for you.

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Every row carries its own figures. The frontmatter above describes the PA-23-250, S/N 27-1 – 27-1999 row only.

Both rows share Vne 216 kt, Vno 172 kt, Va 126 kt and Vfe 109 kt (full flap), all stated as CAS on TCDS 1A10 and independently printed as KCAS by AOPA.

The PA-23-235's serial numbers overlap the Aztec's

The 235's eligible serials, 27-505 through 27-622, sit inside the PA-23-250's own 27-1 through 27-1999 range. The two models shared one serial sequence, so a serial number alone does not tell you which airplane you are looking at. The engine data plates do: O-540-B1A5 at 235 hp is a PA-23-235; O-540-A1B5, A1D5 or A3D5 at 250 hp is a PA-23-250.

The 235 gives up 15 horsepower a side, 200 fpm of climb and 2,500 ft of ceiling against the 250, on the same airframe and the same fuel — which is why Piper sold it for a single year. It is a curiosity rather than a bargain, and its rarity cuts both ways: parts common to the Aztec are fine, anything specific to the 235 is not.

TCDS 1A10 Section IV states no zero-fuel weight for the PA-23-235. AD 83-22-01 names the model alongside the PA-23-250 and PA-E23-250, so a zero-fuel limitation does apply to it through the flight manual; the number is not printed on the certificate and is not asserted here. Read it off the specific airplane's approved flight manual.

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What is stored, and where each figure comes from. All from AOPA's fact sheet, 1961 PA-23-250 column, and all confirmed against TCDS 1A10 where the two overlap:

• 1,650 fpm at gross, 21,000 ft service ceiling. Both better than the Aztec D and E, which AOPA gives as 1,490 fpm and 19,800 ft — this airplane is 400 lb lighter on the same 500 horsepower.
• 28 gallons an hour at 75% power, 14 a side. Marginally more than the fuel-injected C's 27.4, which is what carburetors cost.
• Stall 62 knots clean, 54 knots in the landing configuration. Both several knots below the C and D, again because of the weight.
• 2,775 lb empty, 2,025 lb useful load against 4,800 lb gross. The arithmetic reconciles exactly, which is a check on the transcription.

What is not stored, and why it is not: cruise speed and range. See "What this page cannot tell you" above. AOPA's Max. Structural Cruising Speed of 172 KCAS is Vno — a limit, not a cruise — and using it as one would be a serious error.

Single-engine performance is the number this page cannot give you, and on a twin it is the one that decides the purchase. TCDS 1A10 publishes no performance at all, and neither AOPA source states a single-engine climb rate or ceiling for any Aztec. The pre-split page asserted a 6,400 ft single-engine ceiling and 100–150 fpm of single-engine climb at gross with nothing behind either; both have been deleted rather than repeated. What can be said with a source is that AOPA puts Vmc at 80 mph (70 KIAS) for a C — low for the class, and the basis of the Aztec's reputation as a forgiving twin — and that a low Vmc is control margin, not climb margin. Get the real single-engine numbers out of the approved flight manual for the specific airplane and weight before you need them.

The V-speed fields are named _kias and 1A10 states its limits as CAS. The block heading reads Airspeed Limits (CAS) and the certificate carries no finding that indicated airspeed equals calibrated on this type. The stored figures are the certificate's own bracketed knots, unconverted — house rule, recorded in the saved passage. AOPA independently prints 216 and 172 and labels them KCAS.

Va is 126 knots, not 129. The certificate schedules maneuvering speed by weight — 145 mph (126 knots) at 4,800 lb and 149 mph (129 knots) at 5,200 lb — and these airplanes are not certificated to 5,200 lb. The 129 belongs to the later Aztecs.

Vfe is 109 knots, full flap, and there are no part-flap speeds. The 139 and 122 knot limits on the same certificate page apply only to S/N 27-2505 and up with Item 625 installed. They are not available here.

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All figures for the 1960–1962 PA-23-250: 4,800 lb maximum weight, 2,775 lb standard empty, 2,025 lb useful load, 4,000 lb maximum zero-fuel weight, 144 gallons total (864 lb), 200 lb of baggage in the rear compartment.

Read the zero-fuel weight first, every time, and on this airplane read it twice. It is 4,000 lb, so everything that is not fuel — people, bags, equipment — is capped at 4,000 − 2,775 = 1,225 lb, regardless of the 2,025 lb useful load. That is 242 lb tighter than the six-seat Aztec C's cap, on an airplane with one fewer seat.

Full fuel, two adults. 864 lb of fuel plus two people and bags at 450 lb is 1,314 lb aboard, 4,089 lb ramp weight, zero-fuel weight 3,225 lb. Comfortable in every dimension. This is the airplane's natural mission.

Four adults and bags, full fuel. Four at 190 lb is 760 lb, plus 150 lb of bags is 910 lb. Zero-fuel weight 3,685 lb — inside the 4,000 lb limit with 315 lb to spare. Add 864 lb of fuel and the takeoff weight is 4,549 lb, under 4,800. Four adults and full fuel works, and the airplane climbs better doing it than any later Aztec would.

Five adults and bags. Five at 180 lb is 900 lb, plus 150 lb of bags is 1,050 lb. Zero-fuel weight 3,825 lb — still inside 4,000, with 175 lb of margin. Fuel available to 4,800 lb: 4,800 − 2,775 − 1,050 = 975 lb, about 162 gallons, more than the tanks hold. Fill them: takeoff weight 4,689 lb. A full cabin and full tanks is legal at average weights, which is the point of the airplane.

Where it stops working. Five adults at 200 lb each plus 200 lb of baggage is 1,200 lb of payload, putting zero-fuel weight at 3,975 lb — 25 lb inside the limit, before a drop of fuel. Add anything at all and the airplane is illegal regardless of how empty the tanks are. You run out of structure long before you run out of tank, and leaving fuel behind does not help.

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These are 1960 and 1961 airplanes and every panel is somebody's retrofit. They also predate the Aztec B's modular instrument panel, which AOPA singles out as one of the first in general aviation — so avionics work on a 1961 Aztec is materially more awkward and more expensive than on a B or later. That is a real cost difference and it is easy to miss when comparing asking prices.

What to insist on: ADS-B Out compliance verified on paper. A WAAS navigator if IFR is the point. An engine monitor on both engines — twelve air-cooled cylinders with carburetors and no injection means mixture distribution is what you are managing.

What not to bother with: a full glass rebuild. On the rarest and least documented Aztec variant, that money is better spent on engines, hydraulics and fuel cells.

See Avionics Pricing Reference.

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Tip tanks. Aftermarket fuel STCs exist for the Aztec line. Any added fuel runs straight into the 4,000 lb zero-fuel weight, which on this variant is the tightest on the entire type certificate. More fuel does not buy more payload here; it trades payload for range, at a worse exchange rate than on the later airplanes.

Turbocharging. Rajay-type aftermarket turbo STCs were sold for normally aspirated Aztecs and parts support is now poor. Note that the factory turbocharged airplane starts at the Aztec B, so there is no factory turbo option on this variant at all.

Vortex generators. STC'd kits are offered for the PA-23. Treat vendor performance claims as vendor performance claims.

Verify what is actually installed against what is actually approved. On a sixty-five-year-old airframe with a thin fleet, the paperwork audit is a larger part of the pre-buy than the airplane.

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See Maintenance Ecosystem.

Mechanic familiarity: specialist. The AD burden, the hydraulic system and twin-engine complexity mean a shop that knows PA-23s is worth travelling to. The Piper Apache Club and the Piper Owner Society are where to find one.

Parts availability: fair, and worse than the later Aztecs. Consumables and engine parts are fine. Airframe parts specific to the short-nose, five-seat airplanes — and anything specific to the 118-airframe PA-23-235 — are genuinely scarce.

Hourly running cost, built from this page's own fields:

• Fuel at 28 gph, the largest line by a wide margin
• Engine overhaul reserve: $52,000 ÷ 2,000 hr = $26 per engine per hour, so $52/hr for the pair. (engine_overhaul_cost_usd is PER ENGINE and the cost model multiplies it by engine_count.)
• Propeller reserve: the catalogue derives $6,000 per propeller at 2,000 hours for a piston twin — two full-feathering hubs. The pre-split page stored $1,150 per propeller with no source, far below what overhauling a feathering hub costs, and that figure has been removed so the derived value applies.
• A generous general reserve, because the airframe is old and the systems are plumbed

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See Aircraft Valuation Methodology.

This page's price is MARKET ASKING data, not a Vref or Aircraft Bluebook figure — this catalogue has no subscription to either guide, and rule 27 allows market asking as a fallback only when labeled as exactly that. A 7 September 2026 guide search found nothing readable at Vref or the Bluebook, both subscription services with no public value routes, and AOPA's valuation service is Vref-powered and member-gated; that finding is unchanged on a fresh check.

On 2026-09-11, exactly one 1960-1962 Aztec was found for sale anywhere: a non-flying project aircraft. Trade-A-Plane and Barnstormers each independently list the same airframe — N998FB, a 1961 Piper Aztec PA-23-250, serial 27-440 (inside this page's own certificated S/N 27-1 through 27-1999 range, and the ad itself states "5 seats," confirming the variant), not flown since 2008, engines pickled, exterior 5/10, interior 4/10 — at $40,000. The full survey, with the raw listing text from both sites, is saved at raw/market/market-pa23250early-aztec-tradeaplane-2026-09-11.md.

Every other Aztec on every channel checked is a 1963-or-later, six-seat Aztec B or newer — this page's own prior survey found the same thing on 7 September 2026 (Controller's oldest was a 1963 at $139,900; Hangar67's Aztec group report gave a 1963-1980 year range; AeroGurus' oldest was a 1969), and the 2026-09-11 check confirms it again. That is what a two-year model superseded by a six-seat successor looks like from the outside: this one project airframe is the entire market for the variant on the date checked.

$40,000 is a project-airframe floor, not a typical asking price. price_min_usd, price_max_usd and price_typical_usd are all set to $40,000 because it is the only data point that exists, not because that is a real market band — a flying, current-annual example of this variant would be expected to price meaningfully higher, and this is flagged as one of the least-confident figures on this page.

The Aztec B/C band is still not carried across, because it would price a five-seat, 4,800 lb, carbureted airplane using a six-seat, 5,200 lb, fuel-injected airplane's figures. Aviation Consumer's PA-23 guide gives a figure for the Apache — "around $30,000", written in 2015 — and none for any Aztec.

What this means for you as a reader: this page will now surface in a budget-filtered search, but at a price that reflects one non-flying project airplane rather than the type generally.

What else can be said beyond the one data point:

• Two O-540s at $52,000 each is $104,000 of overhaul liability, and on the cheapest variant of the type that number probably exceeds the airframe value. Engine time is not one factor among several here; it is the purchase.
• The five-seat cabin and the 4,000 lb zero-fuel weight both discount this airplane against a B or later, and both are permanent — no modification fixes either.
• The Apache 235 is rarer still (118 eligible serials) and rarity in a sixty-year-old light twin is a parts problem before it is a collector premium.
• Price it from current asking prices and a Vref or Bluebook lookup, and discount for the panel work an early non-modular airframe will need.

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Verify AD applicability against the FAA's own database for the specific serial number. The pre-split page listed AD references that have not been checked in this pass, and they have been removed rather than repeated.

Zero-fuel weight — AD 83-22-01. Applies to Models PA-23-235, PA-23-250 and PA-E23-250 (Amendment 39-10852, clarified 1998), and requires zero-fuel weight limitations to be inserted in the flight manual to prevent wing structure damage from excessive fuel weight. On these serials the certificate itself states the number: 4,000 lb. That is 400 lb tighter than every later Aztec and it is the single most important thing to understand about loading this airplane.

Nose baggage door — AD 2009-13-06. Covers certain PA-23, PA-31 and PA-42 airplanes and life-limits nose baggage door components after several accidents, including fatal ones, in which the door opening in flight was a causal factor. These airplanes have no nose baggage compartment — the forward locker appears on the type certificate at S/N 27-2000 — so the directive should not reach a stock short-nose airframe. Confirm against the AD's own applicability list for the serial rather than taking that as read.

Pre-buy red flags, in the order they cost money:

• Engines, twice over. Two O-540s at $52,000 each at the national specialty tier, before accessories and before removal and installation. On a variant with no established market price, a run-out pair can exceed the value of the airplane.
• Fuel cells. Four bladders that crack with age. A full set plus labor is a five-figure job.
• Hydraulics. One engine-driven pump on the left engine runs the gear and flaps, with backups behind it. Sixty-five years of hoses and seals.
• Steel-tube fuselage structure. Borescope it. Moisture collects in the belly tubes.
• Carburetor-specific items. Carburetor heat, induction icing behavior and mixture distribution are all live concerns on a carbureted 540 in a way they are not on the injected later airplanes.
• Janitrol combustion heater. Time-limited between overhauls, commonly deferred.
• Records. On a variant with roughly 1,900 eligible serials built sixty-five years ago, an incomplete AD compliance record is not a discount, it is an unknown.

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See GA Insurance Underwriting.

Underwrites as a vintage light twin: multi-engine rating required, instrument rating expected for full hull coverage, a meaningful dual requirement in make and model before solo, and annual recurrent training expected for the better rates. Hull values are low enough on this variant that liability is often the larger part of the premium.

The figure in typical_hull_insurance_annual_usd is carried unchanged from the pre-split page and is a band, not a quote. Get a real one before making an offer; on a twin the insurance answer can end the conversation.

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