What flies around, comes around. And for one lucky member of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), that trip will be in a 1958 Cessna 182.
The 182 — one of the most popular and versatile general aviation aircraft — was featured on the first cover of AOPA Pilot magazine back in 1958. With AOPA celebrating its 85th anniversary in 2024, the choice of the straight-tail 182 as the next sweepstakes airplane was easy aeronautical decision-making, AOPA officials said.
“What a special year this is, and choosing the 182 as the next giveaway made perfect sense,” said Kollin Stagnito, AOPA senior vice president of media and marketing. “There is so much to celebrate this year, and the 182 marks the latest in a long line of remarkable sweepstakes aircraft. One of our members is going to be blown away.”
The aircraft was a blank aluminum canvas with a worn yellow cloth interior when AOPA obtained it in 2023 and, in a twist on the usual process, it was immediately sent to the paint shop.
The team’s goal was to emulate the best features of the aircraft on the very first AOPA Pilot cover, which made choosing the paint scheme and tail number simple. The classic paint lines of the white, turquoise, and black livery harken back to the early days of Cessna with retro decals and traditional N-number placements. The 4000D tail number also pays homage to the 1958 magazine cover aircraft, which had a tail number of 4054D.
The paint scheme was redesigned by Craig Barnett of Scheme Designers in Cresskill, New Jersey, and the scheme was brought to life by Gustav Haussler, known as “Good Ol’ Gus” to his regular customers, of Master Aircraft Services in Wickenburg and Bisbee, Arizona.
From the paint shop, the aircraft will make one stop at the Buckeye Air Fair in Arizona for its official public debut. From there, the Skylane will fly to eastern Arizona for the next step of its makeover: The interior.
“Taking a classic aircraft and making it look new again is one thing, but that wouldn’t exactly make it a resto-mod,” Stagnito added. “That’s why the interior design will tip its hat to the old, but embrace new developments in materials and technology. The AOPA Sweeps 182 will feature a brand-new Garmin panel that will include several GI 275s to bring all the technology a modern pilot wants, while keeping the charm of the circular steam gauges we’ve all come to know and love.”
For the interior, Arturo at Arturo’s Aircraft Interiors will strip the aircraft down to the aluminum and install all-new tan carpeting, headliner, and door panels, with the classically designed leather and cloth seats bringing the outside in with turquoise accents. The yokes will be restored and painted, bringing the classic Cessna logos back to life.
The complete restoration is expected to take about 18 months to complete, association officials said.
For more information: AOPA.org