Piper J-3 Cub
The Piper J-3 Cub is an American light aircraft that was built between 1938 and 1947 by Piper Aircraft. The aircraft has a simple, lightweight design which gives it good low-speed handling properties and short-field performance. The Cub is Piper Aircraft's most-produced model, with nearly 20,000 built in the United States. Its simplicity, affordability and popularity invokes comparisons to the Ford Model T automobile.
| J-3 Cub | |
|---|---|
| A former-military L-4H Grasshopper in 1990 | |
| Role | Trainer/light aircraft |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Piper Aircraft |
| Designer | C. G. Taylor Walter Jamouneau |
| First flight | 1938 |
| Produced | 1938–1947 |
| Number built | 19,888 (US built) 150 (Canadian-built) 253 TG-8 gliders |
| Developed from | Taylor Cub Taylor J-2 |
| Variants | PA-11 Cub Special PA-15 Vagabond PA-16 Clipper PA-18 Super Cub |
The aircraft is a high-wing, strut-braced monoplane with a large-area rectangular wing. It is most often powered by an air-cooled, flat-4 piston engine driving a fixed-pitch propeller. Its fuselage is a welded steel frame covered in fabric, seating two people in tandem.
The Cub was designed as a trainer. It had great popularity in this role and as a general aviation aircraft. Due to its performance, it was well suited for a variety of military uses such as reconnaissance, liaison and ground control. It was produced in large numbers during World War II as the L-4 Grasshopper. Many Cubs are still flying today. Cubs are highly prized as bush aircraft.
The aircraft's standard chrome yellow paint came to be known as "Cub Yellow" or "Lock Haven Yellow".