SHOEMAKER KENT L, GULATI VIJAY K, OPALKA JAMES W· ICAO24 a86f2d· last seen Jun 2026

N6421J is a Piper Cherokee, a single-engine piston aircraft operated by SHOEMAKER KENT L, GULATI VIJAY K, OPALKA JAMES W. SkyMeter has tracked 82 flights totalling 45 hours of airtime via ADS-B. The most frequent segment is KBTP to KBTP. Service window in our records spans 338 days. Of those flights, 4 (4.9%) carry at least one detected incident — go-around, unstable approach, stall warning, or runway excursion. The Piper Cherokee has a 35 ft wingspan, a maximum takeoff weight of 2,440 lb.

About the Piper Cherokee

The Piper PA-28 Cherokee is one of general aviation's most successful designs, introduced in 1960 as Piper's answer to the Cessna 172. Built around a low-wing configuration with a single piston engine and fixed tricycle gear, the Cherokee family became a training and personal-flying staple across six decades. The original Cherokee 140, 150, 160, and 180 models—all grouped under the P28A designator—offered pilots an affordable, stable platform with docile handling characteristics and a roomy cabin that seated four adults. Piper built more than 32,000 PA-28 variants over the years, making it one of the most-produced light aircraft in history. The type's simplicity and ruggedness earned it a reputation as a forgiving trainer, and thousands of pilots earned their private certificates in Cherokees.

The PA-28-180 Cherokee, the most common variant under P28A, cruises around 125 knots on 180 horsepower, with a range of roughly 600 nautical miles and a service ceiling near 15,000 feet. Its Hershey-bar wing—a constant-chord design without taper—sacrifices some efficiency for predictable stall behavior and ease of manufacture. While later PA-28 models adopted tapered wings and fuel-injected engines, the early Cherokees remain ubiquitous on flight lines worldwide, prized for low operating costs and straightforward maintenance. The type's longevity is a testament to Piper's original design philosophy: build a simple, honest airplane that works.

SkyMeter has tracked flights across airframes and operators, with the largest observed operator.

FLIGHTS
82
all time
FLOWN HOURS
45
tracked time
📍
AIRPORTS VISITED
22
unique
📡
CALLSIGNS
1
24 routes
📅
SERVICE PERIOD
06/28/2025 → 06/02/2026
first → last
INCIDENT RATE
4.9%
4 flagged

Top routes

By flight count

10
8
2
1
1
KBTP 5D6
1
KBTP 4G1
1
1
1
1
1

Flight numbers

Most-flown by this airframe

1

Aircraft specifications

Piper Cherokee

Engines
Single Piston
Vref (approach)
70 kt
MTOW
2,440 lb
Wingspan
35 ft
Length
24 ft
Wake category
Light

Recent flights

Newest 41 operations of N6421J

41
06/02/2026
1h 17m
No alerts
09/13/2025
28m
△ Unstable approach
08/21/2025
1h 29m
No alerts
08/16/2025
1h 28m
No alerts
08/16/2025
1h 17m
No alerts
07/26/2025
28m
△ Unstable approach
07/05/2025
1h 11m
No alerts
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