So you want to fly tail wheel aircraft and wondered what the best plane to learn on, well you have found it! The Piper SuperCub is the ideal aircraft to acquire all those new skills and have lots of fun learning.

The student sits in the front and the view over the nose is good compared to many other tail wheel aircraft. You will still need to weave your way down the taxiway to make sure you avoid any obstacles but with good brakes and the tail wheel, it is easily controllable. The SuperCub will teach you all about using the rudder on take off, landing and when turning in the air. Lots of new skills to learn but you will enjoy it!

The history of the aircraft

The PA-18-95 (The military version was called an L-18C) was the first series of Super Cubs produced by Piper. They have more and different tubing to the PA-18-90 which was an upgraded J3C. The original empty weight was around 800 to 840 pounds.

LCUB is fitted with the C-90-8F engine which really develops about 95 horse power during take-off, it has no flaps and as the engine does not have a starter it needs to be hand swung. The C-90 engine burns around 5 gallons per hour. Around 840 L-18Cs were produced in total.

G-LCUB was originally built as an L-18C-PI with c/n 18-1631 first registered as 51-15631 indicating it was built in 1951. It then went to the French Army as 18-1631 and was sold to Three Counties Aero Club at Blackbushe in January 1971 when it was registered G-AYPR. It was sold through several private owners around England before arriving at Liverpool, when it's registration was changed in February 2007 to G-LCUB by J.A. Keen at Liverpool Airport just before the Tiger Club bought it and moved it down to our base at Headcorn. Now at Pent Farm.

Our previous Super Cubs








Included G-BBYB, having previously been owned by Bob Pooley, a long time member of the Club. We purchased it from him in the mid 1990’s until an accident in early 2007.

Before this we operated G-AVPT a PA18-150 SuperCub both on wheels and floats. It flew off a lake near Camber Sands in the 1970’s and 80’s. It was also extensively used for glider towing at Redhill, Challock and many other places. PT ended its days when it suffered an engine failure on take off from Headcorn on a snowy day in February 1991.

See the page on Floating Tigers for more pictures of this aircraft.

In the 1960’s the Club got its first SuperCub registered G-ARAM. It was used for training, glider towing and touring until it was sold. The photo shows Jack Brabham the racing driver, who flew at the Club in the 60’s, chatting in front of G-ARAM. This aircraft is still flying in the UK.

Photograph Copyright © John Blake.

Another shot of AM at Redhill. ARAM is still flying today after being used for many years at a flying club in Essex. Anyone know what colours it was painted while it was at the Club?

Photograph Copyright © Ron Smith.

Top of page

The Tiger Club 1990 Ltd
Damyns Hall Aerodrome
Aveley Road,
Upminster,
Essex RM14 2TN

Tel: 01708 524633

Office hours 0900 to 1700

Flight booking at
Goboko