C Gilbert Taylor and his brother established the
Taylor Brothers Aircraft Corporation in 1929 to market the Taylor Chummy light
aircraft. In the 1930s, they ran into financial difficulties, and company
secretary W T Piper obtained the manufacturing and marketing rights for the
Taylor Cub, which had first flown in 1930.
Engineer Walter Jamouneau redesigned the existing E-2 Cub which became the
successful Piper J3 Cub. In 1937 Piper formed the Piper Aircraft
Corporation to continue the manufacture of the aircraft, which was a braced
high-wing monoplane of mixed basic construction with fabric covering,
conventional tailskid landing gear and an enclosed cabin for two in tandem.
When first produced by Piper, the J 3 Cub was powered by a 40 hp A40-4 flat-four engine. Various derivatives followed with more powerful engines, and in 1941 it was ordered by the US Army as an observation aircraft, the L-4.
Post-war Piper adopted the PA
designation for its aircraft and the Cub was produced as the PA-11 with a
65 hp engine.Production switched to the improved J 5 Coupe,
and Piper built a total of 14,125 civil and 5,703 military Cubs.
Piper J 3 Cub ZK-AHD was first registered on 20 April 1939. In the same year, three J 3s were imported into New Zealand, two for private owners and the third (ZK-AHC) for the Nelson Aero Club. These three are still flying, and ZK-AHD of the SVAS is considered the most original.
The SVAS aircraft ZK-AHD is an original J3 with the 50 hp Continental. About 50 Piper Cubs of various versions are on the NZ register, but AHD is the only 50hp model.
First Flight 1938
Role 2 seat light tourer
Span
35’ 2”(10.7m)
Length
22’ 4’ (6.82m)
Max Weight 1220lbs (553kg)
Powerplant 50 hp Continental A-50 4 Cylinder
Speed
100mph (161kmh)
Range 300miles (482km)
Ceiling 12,000 ft
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