![]() CubCrafters’ EX-2: Passport to adventure |
Maybe it’s the heightened visibility of the Valdez Short Take Off and Landing (STOL) competition, persistent messaging from the Recreational Aviation Foundation or just some aerial extension of the back-to-nature movement, but interest in bush flying and STOL aircraft is trending. Surely, neo-Cub manufacturer CubCrafters belongs on the list of contributing factors.
The “Reimagined” Piper Cub
Originally founded to provide aftermarket upgrades to the Piper Cub, CubCrafters (CC) began creating composite, “better than original” versions of the iconic bush plane—the Top Cub, Sport Cub S2 and Carbon Cub SS—in the last decade. Its amateur-built kit Carbon Cub EX, introduced in 2010, furthered the refinement process. Wrapped around a chromoly-steel cage, the airframe is stronger than the original Super Cub, yet weighs almost 300 pounds less and has fewer than half the parts.