Cub vs citabria

daydreamer

Well-Known Member
What's the biggest difference between the two as far flying/training goes?

Citabria is slightly heavier,
faster approach speed, you can see over the nose without S -turns, easier to get into a spin

Can anyone give me tips for transitioning to a citabria from J3-65hp?
Are the rudder more/less sensitive?
 
I wouldn't worry much about it. Carry over the fundamentals you learned.

I've flown a few taildraggers, they mostly fly the same (DHC2 and smaller. Getting into larger ones you can blanket the tail...)
 
I've flown PA11/PA18s and Citabrias. Cubs are hands down the better airplane, unless your into aerobatics. They fly similarly, cub is much lighter on the controls and will get off the ground and land shorter, but the Citabria will cruise faster and is typically less expensive. I've only spun a Citabria once and it certainly doesn't "want" to spin and recovered itself as soon as the controls were neutralized. Both are good for training, my Alma Mater actually uses them for primary training. Citabria is probably easier than a J3, it really all depends on budget and mission.
 
The first difference is the spelling between the two.

The second difference is the cub is more fun unless you're doing aerobatics then the Citabria wins. Since the standard cub is non-aerobatic.


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I've flown both. I prefer the Citabria, maybe because I've got more time in one.

But you can't go wrong with either.
 
A cub is better if you like yellow and lots of it...

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The cub is better if you're into paying 4x what the value in useful load and speed is worth.
In all reality, unless you fly it a lot you won't land any shorter in a cub than a GCBC.
But a cub has the word cub on the side. Which is worth 50-80k all on it's own.
 
There's nothing substantial, transitioning between the two, in terms of flying qualities.
 
+1 for Citabria

I have plenty of Cub time but the late model GCBC is probably the best overall tail wheel airplane I have ever flown.
 
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