What is so cool about a J3 Cub

These little airplanes have been around since the early days of flying. They are made of simple steel bicycle type framing tubes, wrapped in cloth, and painted. The engine is a dirt simple design that dates to the 30s and could most be likened to the engine of an original VW Beatle. This little airplane has the bare minimums of equipment and instrumentation for flight. It is not a particularly sexy design and the cabin cannot be called comfortable or ergonomic. So why was it so popular then and why is it still the sought after lovable plane that it is today.

I think it is because it is so good at being a basic fun to fly airplane.

1. The open door and windows.
The view out the open window is just about as good as it gets. The wind rushing past the opening and the ability to stick your hand outside in the windstream while actually flying in an airplane seems like you are breaking a rule. Didn't our parents, and every sign at the amuzement park harp about keeping our hands inside the vehicle at all times. How can THIS be okay? And once you stick your hand out there you are free to pretend that your hand is a wing and play with the different shapes and angles of attach. It is just plain good fun.

2. It is a real airplane.
It has an engine and wings and a tail. It has all the basic airplane parts that a Boeing 747 has and it operates on the same principles. Thrust, Drag, Lift, and Gravity. The 747 may be a bit more complex and powerful but they are both basically airplanes and they fly. This one happens to only burn 5 gallons an hour and go about 80 miles an hour.

3. The cub is about flying. It is not really serious about getting anywhere. When I go to fly the twin comanche I feel like I need a mission. I need to get somewhere or teach somebody something or get current. The cub is perfect for just going out to the airport and taking a 30 minute spin in the sky.

4. The cub is about learning. It was conceived to be a training airplane and it does that very well. It is certainly not the hardest or most complicated airplane to fly, but by the same token it can teach humility in a hurry if you get complacent with it. Learning to fly a taildragger like the cub will make ANY pilot a better pilot. I feel like a get a little better every time I fly it and I always feel like I have more to learn.

5. The cub is about low and slow flying. The view out the open windows and door has to be experienced to be appreciated. I've noticed all kinds of cool things on the ground near my airport that I have been flying over for years. In the spring you can smell fresh cut hay and grass, jasmine, cows, and a thousand other things that get missed in a closed airplane.

6. The cub is unassuming. It is a plane that just about anyone can afford if you get a few guys together to share it. Even the name the name is unassuming. They could originally be had for $1200 bucks, which was a decent chunk of change in the 30's Guys that own and fly cubs do it because they love flying and not showing off how fast or flashy their aircraft is.

So...  Go out and fly a cub.

A morning Cub flight

It's a cool spring morning in Alabama. We've had a number of days of rain and clouds, but this morning looks pretty good, so I make the decision to head out to the airport- I can sneak in a flight before work. At 7:30, it will take me 20 minutes to get to the airport. Traffic is light since I'm traveling against the main flow of rush hour.

I get to the airport to find it all quiet. I open the hangar door, greet the Cub and marvel at the freedom that we enjoy. So much of the world does not have the liberties and opportunities that we sometimes take for granted. I check the oil and gas, drain some fuel, and preflight the airframe. I push the Cub outside using the flying wires that square up the tail feathers. The plane only weighs about 700 pounds so this is an easy one man task. I check my portable radio and batteries, chock the wheels and verify the throttle connection. I push the mixture in and prime the plane by pumping the throttle three times. I turn the mags on and spin the prop three times. On the third pull, the engine fires just like it always does with a few puffs of black smoke and then things smooth out.

This is part of the beauty and simplicity of a Cub. I am not dependent on electrons stored in a battery for starting, or an alternator, or a voltage regulator, or even a belt, just the pull of my arms. It's not even that much of a pull. I give the plane a once over look. It seems eager to fly so I hop (crawl) in and buckle up. Original Cubs are flown solo from the back seat for weight and balance reasons. Besides, the view out the open window and door is best from the back seat. One would think that it would be windy inside a Cub with the door and window open, but it is actually very pleasant. Even in the Alabama summer Cub occupants remain comfortable. I taxi out to the runup area and do my pre-takeoff routine. There is no DG to set, no complicated procedures, just controls, mags and carb heat. I check final and the other end of the runway for traffic, make my call and taxi onto the runway, ridiculously long and wide for a Cub. I line up and apply power holding the stick back and keeping the plane lined up with the rudder pedals. In a few seconds I let the tail rise, and just a few seconds after that I am airborne.

I see the earth descend below the open door to my right, the Cub in its element gently climbing skyward. A grin develops on my face as I continue around the pattern. It's a little windier up out of ground effect than I anticipated. I have a 30 degree crab established to keep the crosswind at bay on upwind and downwind. I'll make this a quick hop since this wind will make landing more stressful as it gets down to the surface later. I set up for my landing. Abeam the numbers, I pull the power back to 1900 rpm and add carb heat, and the cub descends easily. There are no flaps. I could slip it if needed, but not this time. I am thinking, due to the crosswind, that I will make this a wheel landing rather than a 3-point. I line up on final and set the carb heat to off. You don't want to have to take your hand off the stick to mess with carb heat when you are on or near the runway. I skim over the lights at the end of the runway and hold a level attitude until I gently touch the pavement. Cub tires have a deeper sound when they touch the ground than higher performance airplane tires. It's still a bark, but it is deeper and more drawn out. I hold the tail off as long as I can, and it finally settles on its own. The tailwheel hits smoothly.

It takes some time to taxi down the runway to get to the first turnoff at 1200 feet. I gently turn the Cub onto the taxiway and taxi back to the hangar. The grin is still on my face. It was a short flight but I will think back on it for a couple of days as bad weather comes back in. I put the Cub back in its hangar, and apologize to it for not making it a longer flight. I close the doors, still thinking about how lucky we are to have this freedom. I feel a little sad for those potential pilots out there who have not yet tasted flight. I know it's not for everyone, but there are tons of folks who just haven't made it to the airport for that first flight. I get into my little car and drive to work, arriving on time.

The healing powers of flight

In the fall of 2006, I made my annual trip to my non-aviation doctor. I generally do this several months before I go and see my AME (aviation medical examiner) to get my medical, which allows me to fly and not go insane. He did not like my blood pressure readings. He had mentioned that it was a little high the year before. I was not outside the FAA limits, but there was a trend that just didn't look good.

I like to think that I lead a pretty healthy lifestyle. I was getting some exercise several times a week at that point. My weight was higher than it should be but it was stable. Apparently they worry about the low number more than the high number, but both are important. My doctor decided to put me on some drugs to get it down. I took this for about a month. My doctor gave me his email address so that I could keep him apprised of my bp on a weekly basis. (In my opinion, all doctors should use email with their patients.) The drug caused me to have a really annoying dry cough that kept me awake at night. This was one of those reactions that made him take me off that drug. It was reducing my bp. Having had the bad reaction to that drug he put me on another one. Both of these were legal from an FAA perspective. I never actually took the new drug, but I started flying my Cub every "flyable" morning before going to work.

There is something magical about a Cub. The slow and easy flying. The open window. The simplicity of the controls. The satisfaction of a good tailwheel landing. I don't really know if it was the getting out to the airport early in the morning and starting up the Cub at a peaceful airport which I had all to myself, or the act of flying the Cub, but my bp went down to normal levels. I don't know if this will work for everyone and I don't know if it will work for other airplanes, but it worked for me. I suspect that if you have something that you love to do and you start your day with it, doing something just for you, it will help.

I would be remiss if I suggested that you fly if you are not healthy or well enough to fly safely. You must always follow the guildlines setout by the FAA and be legal when you fly, which means no illegal illnesses or non approved drugs. That being said, you CAN take along a safety pilot who can perform the duties of pilot in command while you enjoy the gift of flight. I have done this on more than one occasion when the distractions of life had me down or confused.

I took one such flight back in 2000 when the company that I was working for had been bought out by a "DOT COM" company. They were in the process of wrecking our company out of sheer incompetence. I later quit that job and went on to form another company that is thriving today, but that is another story. I went up with a friend in his 150 for about an hour and just had the best of times. It was really head clearing. It is one of those days like my first solo, that I will never forget, and I will always owe my friend for that experience. I could have taken up the Twin Comanche, but that would have been too much for my distracted brain at the time, and my friend would not have been able to act as PIC since he was not rated in the plane.

Good luck with your Cub therapy, whatever form it may take.