Pilatus Pc-6 Porter (PT80)
ICAO PT80 Light

Pilatus Pc-6 Porter

Single Turboprop

The Pilatus PC-6 Porter is a Swiss-built STOL utility aircraft famous for its exceptional short-field performance and rugged versatility. First flown in 1959, the Porter was designed for operations in the Alps and other challenging terrain, capable of landing and taking off from unprepared strips as short as 600 feet. Its high-wing configuration, fixed landing gear, and powerful turboprop engine (PT6A-27 in the PT80 variant) enable steep climb rates and slow-speed handling that few aircraft can match. The PC-6 has served in roles ranging from skydiving and cargo hauling to humanitarian missions and military liaison work across six continents. Over 600 Porters have been built, with many still flying after decades of service in bush operations, mountain resorts, and remote airstrips where conventional aircraft cannot venture. The type's legendary reliability and STOL capability have made it a favorite among operators who need to reach places other aircraft simply cannot. SkyMeter has tracked 1 flights across 1 airframes and 1 operators, covering routes.

ACTIVE AIRFRAMES
1
last 7 days
🏢
OPERATORS
1
unique airlines
📊
FLIGHTS
1
tracked
AVG DURATION
58m
per flight
INCIDENT RATE
0.0%
0 flagged

Safety in context

The incident rate counts flights with ANY safety event detected by SkyMeter: go-arounds (a routine response, not a failure), unstable-approach gate flags (advisory thresholds), rejected takeoffs (the system working as designed), and runway events. It is NOT an accident rate or fatality rate. For accident statistics, refer to the NTSB Aviation Accident Database (USA) or the Aviation Safety Network. See methodology for what each event type measures.

Performance

Speed envelope & approach

Vref
55 kt
Vref range
Vmo
Mmo
Vne
174 kt
Vno
152 kt
Vs0 (landing)
46 kt
Vfe
87 kt
Approach category

Dimensions

Airframe geometry

Wingspan
Length
Tail height
Wheelbase
Gear width
Wake category
L

Weight & identification

Operating limits

MTOW
4,850 lb
MALW
Manufacturer model
PC-6 Porter
FAA designator
Registered

Top operators

By fleet size · last 7 days

0

No operator data available.

Safety profile

Flagged flights · last 7 days

Family

Related variants

0

No related variants.

Recent incidents

Flagged flights of PT80

20
08/16/2026
35m
△ Low approach-stability score
08/08/2026
28m
△ Low approach-stability score
06/06/2026
2h 8m
△ Low approach-stability score
06/05/2026
2h 19m
△ Low approach-stability score
05/19/2026
54m
△ Low approach-stability score
05/01/2026
45m
△ Low approach-stability score
05/01/2026
45m
△ Low approach-stability score
04/26/2026
51m
△ Low approach-stability score
04/09/2026
53m
△ Low approach-stability score
12/13/2025
26m
△ Low approach-stability score

Recent flights

Real flights of PT80 · airborne ≥ 20 min

30
08/20/2026
58m
No alerts
08/16/2026
35m
△ Low approach-stability score
08/13/2026
36m
No alerts
08/13/2026
34m
No alerts
08/13/2026
1h 14m
No alerts
08/08/2026
28m
△ Low approach-stability score
07/24/2026
44m
No alerts
07/14/2026
58m
No alerts
07/06/2026
1h 2m
No alerts
07/05/2026
57m
No alerts
06/25/2026
35m
No alerts
06/20/2026
49m
No alerts
06/06/2026
2h 8m
△ Low approach-stability score
06/05/2026
2h 19m
△ Low approach-stability score
06/03/2026
54m
No alerts
06/03/2026
1h 46m
No alerts
05/29/2026
1h 38m
No alerts
05/27/2026
42m
No alerts
05/27/2026
32m
No alerts
05/23/2026
1h 50m
No alerts
05/23/2026
1h 30m
No alerts
05/19/2026
54m
△ Low approach-stability score
05/01/2026
45m
△ Low approach-stability score
05/01/2026
45m
△ Low approach-stability score
05/01/2026
21m
No alerts
05/01/2026
21m
No alerts
05/01/2026
23m
No alerts
05/01/2026
23m
No alerts
04/26/2026
51m
△ Low approach-stability score
04/21/2026
21m
No alerts
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© SkyMeter · All flight data subject to ODbL attribution · Tracking window: 7 days (free tier)