Identify by airplane characteristics

This aircraft is similar to the DHC-2 Beaver, but has non-braced wings with rounded tips. Also the fuselage is slimmer and has more cabin windows. The vertical stabiliser is rounded on all sides.

Cessna's bush plane or utility plane is a larger version of the model 172, with more cabin windows. It can have a fixed tricycle gear, or floats, like here. For the rest it retains the key features of the 172.

The Cessna 208 Caravan is a single engine turboprop with a fixed gear. It has large rectangular cabin windows. The standard Caravan has air intakes on both sides of the prop spinner, with the left intake being larger than the right one, and a large exhaust on the right side of the fuselage. There are conversions however with a different nose shape.

The Bird Dog is a light observation aircraft based on the Cessna 170. It has a cabin that sits high above the nose and rear fuselage. The fuselage has a sort of V-shape, as it is wider at the top than the bottom. Other features are a rounded tail, a horizontally opposed piston engine and single strut braced wings and main gear.

Although this aircraft changed appearance through the years, all models have in common sleek looks, a sideward retracting main gear with long gear doors and tip tanks. The nose gear is close to the tip of the nose. The vertical stabiliser can be straight or swept, and the number of cabin windows also differs. 

The Cessna 340 (and 335, the non-pressurised version) can be easily mixed-up with aircraft of the Cessna 400 series. The general appearance is the same, the differences are in the details. The most obvious difference are the cockpit windows. The Cessna 335/340 has a single cockpit side window in a long D shape.  

The Cessna Skymaster is quite easy to recognise, as no other aircraft in this class has a push-pull propeller configuration with engines in nose and rear of fuselage. Additionally, it has tail booms extending from the high wings, holding two vertical fins and a horizontal stabiliser in between.

Differentiating between most of the Cessna 400 series twins with oval cabin windows is quite hard, as most look very similar, as is the Cessna 340. However, when looking at details the main models can be recognised. The shape of the cockpit and cabin windows is the best way to recognise them from the Beech Queen/King Air and Piper PA-31.

These Cessna 400 series twins have rectangular instead of oval cabin windows, but for the rest they look very similar. Fortunately there are fewer subtypes. The shape of the cockpit and cabin windows is the best way to recognise them from the Beechcraft 65 and Piper PA-31.

The Cessna SkyCourier has a nearly square fuselage, that quickly tapers behind the large cargo door on the left side, aft of the strut braced wings. On top is a quite tall vertical stabiliser with T-tail. Finally, the aircraft has a fixed single wheel tricycle landing gear. All-in-all not difficult to recognise. (photo Textron Aviation Inc.)