Piper J-3 Cub vs Piper Vagabond

Side-by-side specs, range, and operating costs.

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Dimensions & configuration

Representative planforms, drawn to shared scale.

Piper J-3 Cub
35.2 × 22.4 ft 6.7 ft tall
1× Piston Conventional Unpressurized
Piper Vagabond
29.3 × 18.8 ft 6.4 ft tall
1× Piston Conventional Unpressurized

Flight Profile

Service ceiling, range, and climb rate.

Tap legend to isolate

Arc represents the climb-cruise-descent profile based on published service ceiling and range. Climb rate annotated on ascent. FL180 (18,000 ft) shown for reference.

Mission Performance

Stall, approach, cruise, range, ceiling and climb: best values are at the top.

Mission performance specifications
Specification Piper J-3 CubPiper Vagabond
Stall speed 33 kt39 kt
Approach speed 45 kt43 kt
Cruise speed 65 kt78 kt
Range 191 nm220 nm
Service ceiling 11500 ft10000 ft
Rate of climb 450 fpm530 fpm
Fuel burn 3.5 gph4.5 gph

Each axis is scaled independently across the compared aircraft and printed in its own units; every vertex sits at the published figure. Higher is better on all axes: Stall, Approach and Fuel Burn are inverted (lower = higher). A missing figure breaks the line at that axis.

Fuel Burn & Range

Range, endurance, and what the fuel costs by the hour.

Piper J-3 Cub Avgas
3.5 gph
Baseline
191 nm range 18.6 nm/gal 12 gal usable $23 fuel/hr 3h 25m endurance
Piper J-3 Cub: 3.5 gallons per hour at cruise, 191 nautical mile published range, 3 hour 25 minute endurance, 18.6 nautical miles per gallon.
Piper Vagabond Avgas
4.5 gph
Baseline
220 nm range 17.3 nm/gal 12 gal usable $29 fuel/hr 2h 39m endurance
Piper Vagabond: 4.5 gallons per hour at cruise, 220 nautical mile published range, 2 hour 39 minute endurance, 17.3 nautical miles per gallon.
Avgas range each cell = 1 hr of cruise · width scales with speed

Bars show published still-air range. Endurance is usable fuel divided by the published cruise burn. Estimates only. Always verify against the POH.

Runway Performance

Density altitude adjusted estimates

Outside Air Temp
0°F57°F115°F
Field Elevation
SL4,0008,000 ft
Density Altitude

Takeoff over 50 ft obstacle

Landing ground roll

Base distance DA penalty
Scale: 6,000 ft

FAA 10%/1,000 ft DA rule of thumb (FAA-H-8083-25B). Turboprops and jets are less sensitive in practice. Always verify against the POH.

Estimated Operating Costs

Scale:
Piper J-3 Cub Avgas
$59 /hr
Baseline
Piper J-3 Cub: $59 per flight hour — fuel $23, maintenance and reserve $36.
Piper Vagabond Avgas
$66 /hr
Baseline
Piper Vagabond: $66 per flight hour — fuel $29, maintenance and reserve $37.
Piper J-3 Cub Piston
$6,773 /yr Baseline
Piper J-3 Cub: $6,773 per year — insurance withheld, hangar $5,573, annual inspection $1,200.
Piper Vagabond Piston
$5,409 /yr Baseline
Piper Vagabond: $5,409 per year — insurance withheld, hangar $4,209, annual inspection $1,200.

Estimates only. Costs vary by location, pilot profile, and market conditions. See individual aircraft pages for source notes.

Capability & limits

Each bar stacks your selected occupants against full fuel and the aircraft's useful-load limit (the black line). The open gap between them is spare payload. Add an occupant and the gap closes; once it's gone, fuel has to give.

lb

+ lb / pax

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Piper J-3 Cub
2 / 2 seats 12 / 12 gal fuel 383 lb wet payload 455 lb useful 1,220 lb MTOW
Piper Vagabond
2 / 2 seats 12 / 12 gal fuel 448 lb wet payload 520 lb useful 1,150 lb MTOW

Occupants at 190 + 30 lb each. Fuel at 6.7 lb/gal jet-A, 6.0 lb/gal avgas.

Payload-Range Map

Origin: · two fingers to move map

lb

+ lb / pax

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1

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