Piper L-18B Cub Special
The Piper PA-11 Cub Special is a refined, enclosed-cowling version of the classic Piper J-3 Cub, with a slightly more powerful engine and a fully cowled nose instead of the Cub's exposed cylinder heads. Those changes gave it a small speed and efficiency improvement over the original Cub while keeping the same simple, forgiving handling. It remains popular today among vintage aircraft enthusiasts and backcountry pilots who value the classic Cub flying experience. Its lineage traces directly back to one of the most influential light aircraft designs in history.
Did you know?
A refined Cub, the PA-11 Cub Special adds a fully enclosed engine cowling in place of the J-3's exposed cylinder heads.
Specifications
| Length | 6.8 m (22 ft) |
|---|---|
| Wingspan | 10.7 m (35 ft) |
| Height | 2 m (7 ft) |
| Maximum passengers | 1 |
| Persons on board | 2 |
| Maximum take-off weight | 0.6 t |
| Range | 350 NM (648 km) |
| Maximum speed | 97 kt (180 km/h) |
| Service ceiling | 16,000 ft (4,877 m) |
| Optimum ceiling | 12,000 ft (3,658 m) |
| Rate of climb | 500 ft/min (2.5 m/s) |
| Take-off distance | 210 m (689 ft) |
| Landing distance | 150 m (492 ft) |
| Fuel capacity | 75 l |
| Engines | Continental A65-8 |
| Units built | 105 |
Curated by CatchFlights from manufacturer documents, ICAO Doc 8643 and reference works; values are left out where no source could confirm them. Sources are listed on our credits page.
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