Commander 114B

The Commander 114B is a new build, modernised development of the original Rockwell Commander 114. <p>The Rockwell Commander 114 was itself a more powerful development of the Commander 112 of 1970, one of only two new GA designs from Rockwell. Unfortunately for Rockwell, the 150kW (200hp) powered 112 was widely regarded as underpowered. To address concerns with the 112, Rockwell developed the 114 which incorporated a number of improvements plus most importantly a 195kW (260hp) six cylinder engine. <p>The 112 and 114 remained in production with Rockwell until 1979. In 1981 Rockwell's General Aviation Division was sold to Gulfstream Aerospace. Gulfstream held the manufacturing rights for the Commander family but never built the 112 or 114, instead selling the rights to the newly formed Commander Aircraft Company in 1988. <p>Under the Commander Aircraft Company's stewardship, the basic 114 design was improved and updated considerably. The main changes to the Commander 114B over the original 114 include a restyled engine cowling to reduce drag and other aerodynamic improvements, a quieter and more efficient three blade McCauley Black Mac propeller, and a new luxury leather and wool interior. <p>The revised Commander 114B was issued a new Type Certificate on May 4 1992 and production aircraft were delivered from later that year. <p>Apart from the 114B, Commander also offers the 114AT optimised for pilot training and the turbocharged 200kW (270hp) TIO540 powered 114TC, which entered service in 1995. A long range option for the 114B was announced in 1998.

The backbone of this section is from the The International Directory of Civil Aircraft by Gerard Frawley and used with permission. To get your own copy of the book click here.