The Tomahawk is a single-engined low-wing cantilever monoplane with a T-tail and an enclosed cabin for two. It has a fixed tricycle landing gear and is powered by a Lycoming O-235 four-cylinder piston engine with a twin-bladed tractor propeller. The Tomahawk has two front-hinged doors for access to the cabin. The Tomahawk was Piper's attempt at creating an affordable two-place trainer. Before designing the aircraft, Piper widely surveyed flight instructors for their input into the design. Instructors requested a more spinnable aircraft for training purposes, since other two-place trainers such as the Cessna 150 and 152 were designed to spontaneously fly out of a spin. The Tomahawk's NASA GA(W)-1 Whitcomb airfoil addresses this requirement by making specific pilot input necessary in recovering from spins, thus allowing pilots to develop proficiency in dealing with spin recovery. The Tomahawk was introduced in 1977 as a 1978 model. The aircraft was in continuous production until 1982 when production was completed, with 2,484 aircraft built. As of 2020 a handful of Tomahawks are currently being used to train Australian Air Force Cadets in flight courses. These are operated from RAAF Base Amberley by 211 Squadron AAFC. These aircraft have been in service since the early 2000s.
