Piper Aircraft

Piper Aircraft is an American general aviation manufacturer founded in September 1927 in Rochester, New York, by William T. Piper along with Clarence G. Taylor and Gordon A. Taylor, and now headquartered in Vero Beach, Florida. The company builds single-engine and twin-engine aircraft for flight training, private ownership and commercial use, and was long considered one of the Big Three general aviation manufacturers alongside Beechcraft and Cessna. Between 1927 and 2009 Piper produced roughly 144,000 aircraft across 160 certified models, with about 90,000 still in operation. Founder William Piper became known as the Henry Ford of Aviation for his pursuit of affordable, simple-to-operate private airplanes that broadened access to personal flight. Since 2009 Piper Aircraft has been owned by the Government of Brunei through its investment company Imprimis.