Aircraft model
PIPER J3F-65
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Franklin-engined Cub. Piper offered the J-3 with three different 65 hp engines before the war and the airframe is identical in each case; only the powerplant and the cowling differ. It flies exactly like any other Cub — slowly, gently, and with enormous charm.
The Franklin is the problem and it is the same problem the Stinson 108 has. Franklin's corporate history — sold, moved to Poland, intermittently supported — has left parts scarce and overhauls difficult and expensive, and a J3F with a tired engine can be worth less than the cost of making it airworthy. Many have been converted to the Continental A-65 or C-85 under supplemental type certificate, and those aircraft are both easier to own and worth more. Establish which engine is fitted before anything else, then the fabric's age.
Compare with…
Put PIPER J3F-65 side by side with up to two other models.
- PIPER J3F-65
What it is
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | taildragger |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Franklin 4AC-176-B2 |
| Horsepower | 65 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1938 |
| Production end | 1941 |
| Endorsements required | tailwheel |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 65 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 190 nm |
| Service ceiling | 11,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 450 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 33 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | 730 ft |
| Landing over 50 ft | 470 ft |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 530 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 458 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,220 lb |
| Empty weight | 690 lb |
| Usable fuel | 12 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 3.6 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $28,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $62,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 1,200 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | — |
| Overhaul cost, high | — |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 420 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 127 |
| Median year built | 1941.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 2 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 0 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 15.751 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 15.752 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 28 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 22.053 |
| Airworthiness directives | 0 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 127 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 127 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 127 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 1-2 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | —1 |
| Severity | —2 |
| Access | 1 of 103 |
| Support | 7 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 5.8 of 105 |
- Accident record: class median 25 · 181 models in class.
- Severity: class median 5.
- Access: class median 987.
- Support: class median 72.
- Liquidity: class median 20.59.
- 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.