Piper Cherokee Shapes Aviation Experience

A beautifully transformed Piper Cherokee Six-300 continues to shape aviation memories for Trent Palm, his wife, Cynthia and the couple's five children.

When the time came for a restoration, Hannah, age 9, Tristen, age 7, Amelia, age 5, Flynn age 3 and Quintin, age 1 ½, all played a key role in the effort.

"They helped with the interior when I brought home the color palettes," Palm recalled. "They were part of the design team for our family traveler." It's no surprise aviation remains the family hobby. Palm grew up around small aircraft, experiencing flights from the family airstrip near Crown, Minnesota. "Both of my uncles flew, so I've been around aviation my entire life," he said. "I got my pilot's license in high school. I always knew that I wanted to travel with my family. I don't hunt or fish, and the only time that I go camping is next to the airplane."

Palm owned a V-tail Bonanza for a couple of years, and when it was time to upsize, the Piper PA-32 platform was the one that just seemed to make the most sense.

Palm said he started searching for a new aircraft shortly after a job relocation had landed his family in Bismarck, North Dakota. "I'd spent about eight months searching, trying to find the right bird, and I had noticed a 1969 Piper Cherokee Six had popped up for sale near Mandan. It's not every day you can travel 12 miles to go look at an airplane you want to buy," he said.

The Piper's interior was OK, and the paint was in decent shape, because the plane had always been in a hangar, Palm said. The aircraft had no damage history and all original logs. Not only was Palm able to meet the previous owner going back 10 years, he met another owner who had the aircraft in Pipestone, Minnesota, who owned the Piper about 8 years prior. Palm also hooked up with mechanics who had provided service on the aircraft during the last 20 years.

"I called the owner on a Sunday, and by the end of the that week, I had a purchase agreement," Palm said. The plane spent most of its life in the Midwest, and was based primarily in Kansas but never in the South or the Southwest. It's 25 to 30 years in Minnesota and North Dakota.

Trent and Cynthia had four children when they bought the Piper Cherokee Six. "I knew we needed a six-place airplane," he recalled. "There were almost three years between our last child and the little guy, Quinton, when he came along. I remember telling my mechanic I needed a child seat installed in the plane. Piper makes a kit for it, and I told him my family had grown." Palm said after his first year of ownership, he knew he wanted to begin saving for a restoration. "That type of effort really takes time. I was looking for an airport and a facility that also had a mechanic on staff, in case anything happened. And not everybody can put windows in."

Palm's search led to First Class Aerospace, based at Leesburg International Airport (KLEE) in Florida. First Class stripped the aircraft down to the studs on the inside, and installed SoundEx inside the entire aircraft, all new windows, all new leather and all new side panels, he said.

The aircraft originally didn't have a six-place intercom, so when Palm ordered the restoration and everything was out, he wanted a company that also had an avionics shop on the field. He had high-speed USB ports installed in the back of the aircraft so his family could charge electronics over long distance trips.

"This aircraft may be 52 or 53 years old, but the restoration breathed a new aspect of life into it," Palm said. "We really received a brand new aircraft. The PA-32 fit our budget and continues to meet our aviation needs across all spectrums."

When the kids encountered the aircraft upon its return to Worthington, they noticed something different. "The first time in the plane, they noticed the old airplane smell was gone," Palm recalled.

An 11-day Christmas excursion to Florida was the family's first cross-country trip after the restoration, he said.

"The kids met different people, and it was an awesome trip that expanded our general aviation experience. Aviation remains our family hobby and experience."