Piper Super Cub
Type-certificate model Piper 18: the catalog groups its variants under that name.
29 for sale, 14 with a US-dollar asking price. Asking prices, not sales.
What does a Piper Super Cub ask?
$224,750 is the median of 14 US-dollar asking prices; the middle half ask $172,500–$281,000.
29 for sale now. Asking prices, not sales.
How far does a Piper Super Cub fly?
Across its 14 catalog variants, book ranges run 380–380 nm; the PA-18 flies furthest, about 3 h 48 min at 100 kt.
Still air, no reserves; catalog confidence low.
What does a Piper Super Cub cost to keep?
It depends on how you fly it and where you keep it, so Sprinkle doesn’t give one figure. Work it out on your own numbers.
Go to the cost calculator →Asking price by year built
Each dot is one aircraft's asking price; the line is each year's median, the band its low–high. 1956–1958: 6 for sale, 4 priced.
The figures by year
| Year | For sale | Priced | Median ask | Low–high |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 1952 | 2 | 1 | — | $405,000–$405,000 |
| 1953 | 4 | 1 | — | $119,900–$119,900 |
| 1954 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 1955 | 3 | 3 | — | $180,000–$230,000 |
| 1956 | 2 | 1 | — | $125,000–$125,000 |
| 1957 | 3 | 3 | — | $170,000–$349,900 |
| 1958 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 1963 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 1976 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 1977 | 1 | 1 | — | $298,000–$298,000 |
| 1978 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 1979 | 1 | 0 | — | — |
| 1981 | 2 | 1 | — | $225,000–$225,000 |
| 1993 | 1 | 1 | — | $335,000–$335,000 |
| 2003 | 1 | 1 | — | $169,000–$169,000 |
| 2012 | 1 | 1 | — | $229,000–$229,000 |
Medians from 5 priced aircraft up. Asks outside 0.6–1.6× their year's median are left out.
Recently listed
View all 29 for sale →
Range by variant
Book ranges from the catalog: still air, full fuel, no reserves, at the confidence shown. Plan with your own numbers.
- PA-18380 nm · 100 kt cruise · low confidence
- PA-18-105 (Special)380 nm · 100 kt cruise · high confidence
- PA-18-135380 nm · 100 kt cruise · medium confidence
- PA-18-150380 nm · 100 kt cruise · low confidence
- PA-18A380 nm · 100 kt cruise · medium confidence
- PA-18A (Restricted)380 nm · 100 kt cruise · high confidence
- PA-18A-135380 nm · 100 kt cruise · medium confidence
- PA-18A-150380 nm · 100 kt cruise · medium confidence
- PA-18AS-125380 nm · 100 kt cruise · high confidence
- PA-18AS-150380 nm · 100 kt cruise · high confidence
- PA-18S380 nm · 100 kt cruise · medium confidence
- PA-18S-125380 nm · 100 kt cruise · high confidence
The Piper Super Cub in brief
29 Piper Super Cub listings are for sale across the sites Sprinkle reads as of Nov 12, 2026, built 1951–2012.
The middle half were built 1954–1978.
How the Piper Super Cub performs
By the catalog, the fastest variant cruises at 100 knots.
The longest book range across its variants is 380 nautical miles: still air, no reserves.
It seats up to 2 passengers.
Buying a Piper Super Cub
The middle half of US-dollar asks run $172,500–$281,000, around a median of $224,750, from 14 priced listings. Asking prices, not sales.
The middle half of those that publish airframe time show 812–3,752 hours, from 24 listings.
Before an offer, check
- A pre-buy inspection by a mechanic who knows the type, chosen by you, not the seller.
- Complete logbooks for the airframe, engines and propellers, with any gaps explained.
- Damage history and any repairs, against the logbooks and the registry record.
- Engine time against the overhaul interval, and the shop that did the last overhaul.
- Airworthiness directives and service bulletins: which apply, and how each was closed.
Figures from the listings Sprinkle reads, read Nov 12, 2026. A market read from asking prices, not an appraisal.
About the Piper Super Cub
- Manufacturer
- Piper, United States
- Category
- Piston airplane
- Variants in the catalog
- 22: PA-18, PA-18-105 (Special), PA-18-125 (Army L-21A), PA-18-135, PA-18-135 (Army L-21B), PA-18-150, PA-18A, PA-18A (Restricted)…
- Passengers, at most
- 2
- The farthest the maker says the aircraft can fly on full fuel, in still air with standard reserves. Real trips with passengers and wind come up shorter.
- 380 nm
- Cruise speed, fastest
- 100 kt
- The highest altitude at which the aircraft can still climb at 100 feet per minute. Most trips cruise well below it.
- 19,000 ft
- The heaviest the aircraft is certified to weigh at takeoff, with people, bags and fuel on board.
- 800 kg (1,764 lb)
- The aviation authority’s approval of an aircraft design, such as the FAA’s or EASA’s. Each model flies under one.
- FAA
From Sprinkle's aircraft catalog. Figures are the highest across the model's variants.
The Piper Super Cub fleet
- Registered fleet
- 4,798
- Median age
- 67 years
- Registration changes, past 12 months
- 108
- Most built in the
- 1950s
From the national aircraft registers Sprinkle reads. Read Nov 12, 2026.
Piper Super Cub type certificates
- PA-19 FAA 1A2
- approved Apr 1, 1949 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 680 kg · 1 passengers · Continental C-90-12F or C-90-8F (90 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18 FAA 1A2
- approved Nov 18, 1949 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 680 kg · 1 passengers · Continental C-90-12F or C-90-8F (90 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18S FAA 1A2
- approved May 9, 1950 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 669 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-235-C1 (108 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-19S FAA 1A2
- approved May 9, 1950 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 669 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-235-C1 (108 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18-125 FAA 1A2
- approved Sep 1, 1950 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 680 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-290-D (125 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18S-125 FAA 1A2
- approved Oct 25, 1950 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 669 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-235-C1 (108 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18A FAA 1A2
- approved Sep 21, 1951 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 680 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-290-D (125 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18A FAA AR-7
- approved Feb 5, 1952 · Restricted Type Certificate No. 7 (CAR 8.10(b)) · MTOW 940 kg · Lycoming O-290-D, 125 hp, 2600 rpm · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18A-135 FAA 1A2
- approved Apr 25, 1952 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 680 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-290-D2 (135 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18-135 FAA 1A2
- approved Apr 25, 1952 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 680 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-290-D2 (135 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18S-135 FAA 1A2
- approved May 15, 1952 · CAR 3, as amended November 1, 1949 · MTOW 669 kg · 1 passengers · Lycoming O-235-C1 (108 hp) · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
- PA-18A-135 FAA AR-7
- approved Jun 17, 1952 · Restricted Type Certificate No. 7 (CAR 8.10(b)) · MTOW 940 kg · Lycoming O-290-D2, 135 hp, 2600 rpm · Type certificate data sheet (opens in a new tab)
From the regulators' type-certificate data sheets. Figures shown only where the reading is high-confidence.
Piper Super Cub manuals and documents
- PA-18 “Super Cub” (PDF, opens in a new tab)Pilot’s Operating Handbook · 36 pages
- Pilot's Operating Handbook (PDF, opens in a new tab)Pilot’s Operating Handbook · 58 pages
- Pilot's Operating Handbook for the Piper PA-18 Super Cub (PDF, opens in a new tab)Pilot’s Operating Handbook · 22 pages
- Piper PA-18/PA-12 Product & Modification Guide (PDF, opens in a new tab)Airplane Flight Manual · 2016 · 4 pages
- Airplane Flight Manual (PDF, opens in a new tab)Airplane Flight Manual · 8 pages
- Airplane Flight Manual for the Piper PA-18 Super Cub (PDF, opens in a new tab)Airplane Flight Manual · 38 pages
- CHECK-LIST Normale Piper Pa 18-95 F-GJSG (PDF, opens in a new tab)Checklist · 2021
- Inspection Report (PDF, opens in a new tab)Checklist · 1999 · 4 pages
- Check-List-Piper-Super-Cub (PDF, opens in a new tab)Checklist
- Piper PA-18 Super Cub Checklist (PDF, opens in a new tab)Checklist · 56 pages
- Performance Data for Piper PA-18 Super Cub (PDF, opens in a new tab)Performance · 58 pages
- PA -18 Weight and Balance (PDF, opens in a new tab)Weight and balance · 2 pages
- PA -18 Weight and Balance mystery solved (PDF, opens in a new tab)Weight and balance · 3 pages
- Piper PA-18 Super Cub (PDF, opens in a new tab)Systems · 2010 · 1 pages
- ICA Maintenance Manual for 2200 Floats on PA-18 Piper, Super Cub model (PDF, opens in a new tab)Maintenance · 2009 · 103 pages
- Piper Parts Catalog (PDF, opens in a new tab)Maintenance · 1988 · 164 pages
The 16 most useful of 34 documents in Sprinkle’s library for this model. PDFs open from Sprinkle’s own files.
What one would cost to fly
Put in your own figures; the totals update as you type.
- A month
- $3,635
- A flight hour, all in
- $436
- Flying (fuel and reserve)
- $10,300
- Fixed
- $13,300
- Loan
- $20,023
Fields marked Typical hold a rule-of-thumb figure for a piston airplane: an assumption, not Sprinkle's data. Replace them with your own.
Not a quote: Sprinkle doesn't hold insurance, hangar or maintenance costs. Asking prices, not sales.
From the listings Sprinkle reads for this model. Read Nov 12, 2026.