The Cessna 152 is an American two-seat, fixed-tricycle-gear, general aviation airplane, used primarily for flight training and personal use. It was based on the earlier Cessna 150 incorporating a number of minor design changes and a slightly more powerful engine with a longer time between overhaul.

The Cessna 152 has been out of production for forty years, but many are still airworthy and are in regular use for flight training.

First delivered in 1977 as the 1978 model year, the 152 was a modernization of the proven Cessna 150 design. The 152 was intended to compete with the new Beechcraft Skipper and Piper Tomahawk, both of which were introduced the same year. Additional design goals were to improve useful load through a gross weight increase to 1,670 lb (760 kg), decrease internal and external noise levels and run better on the then newly introduced Avgas fuel.

As with the 150, the great majority of 152s were built at the Cessna factory in Wichita, Kansas. A number of aircraft were also built by Reims Aviation of France and given the designation F152/FA152.

Production of the 152 was ended in 1985 when Cessna ended production of all of their light aircraft; by that time, a total of 7,584 examples of the 152, including A152 and FA152 Aerobat aerobatic variants, had been built worldwide.

In 1996, the Cessna 152 was certified for operation using 100% ethanol fuel as an alternate to 100LL. This shows that the aircraft is adaptable to alternate and renewable energy sources.

In 2007 Cessna announced that it would build a light-sport successor, designated the Model 162 Skycatcher, although production ended in 2013.

All Cessna 152s were manufactured with a Lycoming O-235 engine which has been in production since 1942. The Lycoming provided not only an increase in engine power over the Cessna 150, but also was more compatible with the newer 100LL low-lead fuel.