CubCrafter's Sport Cub Series 2.  Photo by Dave Higdon

When Bill Piper’s company designed and built its venerable Cub more than 70 years ago, he took good advantage of the aviation industry’s state of the art. Since then, of course, many new technologies have emerged and become an everyday part of general aviation. Still, the Piper Cub soldiers on, almost unaffected by change.

Enter CubCrafters, which this week at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh introduced its Sport Cub Series 2, incorporating a long list of features the company says includes more than 100 specific design improvements. Among the improvements are new standard features and new optional equipment expected to enhance safety, performance, utility, and comfort. CubCrafters bills the result as a light-sport aircraft (LSA) version of the Piper Super Cub one can fly as a sport pilot.

CubCrafters Vice President Todd Simmons noted the importance of this new airplane to the legacy of the Cub design: "In just the last four years, CubCrafters introduced both the original LSA-category Sport Cub and its big brother, the Part 23 certified Top Cub, to industry acclaim. And today, we’ve incorporated everything we know about Super Cubs into Sport Cub S2."

Features included in the Series 2 includes the latest AmSafe airbag technology for both pilot and co-pilot, wing flaps, vortex generators, and 25 gallons of fuel capacity in two wing tanks as standard equipment. Options include "flat panel" avionics, traffic-monitoring transponders, backcountry tundra tires, metal props, lights, strobes, fire extinguishers, floats, optional paint schemes, and more.

Simmons’ summary? "Sport Cub S2 uniquely answers the demand for more because S2 is a Super Cub that you can fly without a medical and it forever leaves the open-cowled, J-3 type Cub aircraft behind."