The article is an interesting read as far as the history of the plane and various anecdotes about it are concerned but it doesn't really say why it's still so "badass" nowadays, after 60+ years: is it primarily (1) popular because it's so good (technologically superior, perfectly fit for purpose), or (2) good because it's so popular (i.e. attained a critical mass of people familiar with it)?
The ranking includes all kinds of planes lumped together, some of which are obviously listed because of their technological ingenuity (SR-71 or the Concorde), while others were "workhorses" that outlived the original expectations towards them (like the C-130 and DC-3). Which of the two categories does the Cessna 172 belong to?
Seems like the 172/182 planes would fall under the 'workhorse' category. Still being produced new 60 years later without being phased out for something newer is a pretty impressive testament to the design.
It's almost as if they are the quintessential airplanes. Not in terms of performance, but like, if you want to show aliens how to make fixed-wing, heavier-than-air aircraft and you want to give them a "reference implementation" that illustrates the basic principles, you give them a Cessna 172/182. Easy to fly and to maintain, comprehensible by a technician without the specialized knowledge demanded by high-performance jets and stuff.
It's a bit of both, but it's much more so that they built a lot of them, and then threats of lawsuits basically tanked general aviation production in about 1985 and it's never really recovered - so there is a heavy bias towards older design.
Even the 172 itself was out of production for over a decade (1986-1996). Peak production on the 172 (in the 60s) was ~1400/yr. In 2019 they built 52.
Then, as it turns out, this is actually a series of articles on different planes, and Cessna 172 is only #21 out of 25 in their "badass" ranking: https://www.popularmechanics.com/military/aviation/g28612977...
The ranking includes all kinds of planes lumped together, some of which are obviously listed because of their technological ingenuity (SR-71 or the Concorde), while others were "workhorses" that outlived the original expectations towards them (like the C-130 and DC-3). Which of the two categories does the Cessna 172 belong to?