Aircraft model
AERONCA C-3
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Aeronca C-3, universally known as the Flying Bathtub, is a 1931 two-seat side-by-side aeroplane with a 36 hp two-cylinder engine and a fuselage shaped like its nickname. It was one of the first genuinely affordable light aircraft in America and it is among the oldest aircraft types still flying in numbers.
It is bought as a historic artefact that happens to fly, not as transport: 56 knots, eight gallons, and a 36 hp engine that is unlike anything else on an airfield. The Aeronca E-113 twin is the practical problem — parts come from a handful of specialists and restorers, and knowledge of it is concentrated in the type club. Fabric over steel tube means recovering is the dominant cost. It qualifies as a light sport aircraft, which has supported values, and a good one is a museum piece that is flown.
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Put AERONCA C-3 side by side with up to two other models.
- AERONCA C-3
What it is
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | taildragger |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Aeronca E-113 |
| Horsepower | 36 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1931 |
| Production end | 1937 |
| Endorsements required | tailwheel |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 56 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 200 nm |
| Service ceiling | 12,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 400 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 28 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | — |
| Landing over 50 ft | — |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 437 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 389 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,006 lb |
| Empty weight | 569 lb |
| Usable fuel | 8 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 2 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $25,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $60,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | — |
| Overhaul cost, low | — |
| Overhaul cost, high | — |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 462 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 52 |
| Median year built | 1935.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 0 · thin base (low)1 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 0 · thin base (low)2 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 6 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 11.54 · thin base (low)3 |
| Airworthiness directives | 0 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | low |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 52 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 52 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 52 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 1-2 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | —1 |
| Severity | —2 |
| Access | —3 |
| Support | 3.5 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 1.4 of 105 |
These record scores treat AERONCA C-3 as one design with the same aircraft registered under other names: it includes the record of aircraft once registered under SPARTAN. Prices are not combined.
- Accident record: class median 29.1 · 174 models in class.
- Severity: class median 9.09.
- Access: class median 974.
- Support: class median 81.
- Liquidity: class median 20.47.
- Each of the five categories places the model within its peer class, from 0 (the worst of the class) to 10 (the best): a position among comparable models, not a grade. The overall score is the sum of the categories shown that are scored, out of 10 for each (50 when all five are); it is given only when at least 4 of the five are scored, and it can be set against another model's only when both are in the same peer class and scored on the same categories.