This 1947 Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser Is a Modernized ‘AircraftForSale’ Top Pick

Each day, the team at Aircraft For Sale picks an airplane that catches our attention because it is unique, represents a good deal, or has other interesting qualities. You can read Aircraft For Sale: Today’s Top Pick at FLYINGMag.com daily.

Today’s Top Pick is a 1947 Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser.

For many pilots, the charm of a vintage taildragger can be difficult to resist. When a particular antique aircraft arrives on the market with updates that make it more practical for regular use in modern airspace, it can be enough to compel some of us to jump at the opportunity.

While the Piper J-3 Cub often is considered to be the original, definitive personal aircraft, one of its successors, the PA-12 Super Cruiser, offers qualities that J-3 owners longed for, including more power and an extra seat. The ability to take two passengers instead of one, while enjoying more pep than the J-3, is a significant step up.

For pilots shopping for their first airplane, the Super Cruiser’s combination of antique appeal and utility can be very appealing.

When my two sons were in elementary school, I often imagined loading them into the rear seat of a PA-12 and going for a breakfast flight or day trip. That was back when my wife was still skeptical of small airplanes. I was not sure she would fly often, if at all. Eventually she came around to general aviation, and we bought a four-place airplane, but my affection for the Super Cruiser never faded.

The aircraft for sale today takes the performance and utility boost to a higher level with newer avionics, oversized tires for backcountry operations, and an engine much larger than the stock power plant. Suddenly, the idea of a short hop for the proverbial $100 hamburger seems somewhat uninspired.

This adventure-ready machine seems more likely to land on a gravel bar in the middle of a river, carrying a portable grill in its baggage compartment with which pilots could prepare their own burgers.  

This 1947 Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser has 3,358 hours on the airframe and zero hours on its freshly overhauled 150 hp Lycoming O-320-A2B and Sensenich propeller. The Piper is equipped with a Petersen Auto Fuel STC installed and is approved for use of mogas. It also has an Electronics International engine monitor, B&C alternator, Sutton exhaust, and  Sky-Tec starter.

The aircraft underwent a restoration in 2014 and is equipped for backcountry flying with many STC and field-approved modifications, including 31-inch Alaskan Bushwheels, wing flaps, PA-18 empennage, battery box and trim system, vortex generators, extended baggage compartment, cabin X-braces, and modernized instrument panel.

The panel includes a Garmin Aera 660 GPS, Garmin GTR 225 VHF com radio, uAvionix with ADS-B Out, JPI fuel totalizer, King KT-76A transponder, and  PM-1000 II audio panel.

Pilots looking for classic taildragger with updates to the airframe and engines, and a bit more space in the cabin than some competing models, should consider this 1947 Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser, which is available for $125,000 on AircraftForSale.

If you’re interested in financing, you can do so with FLYING Finance. Use our airplane loan calculator to calculate your estimated monthly payments. Or, to speak with an aviation finance specialist, visit flyingfinance.com.

• FLYING Magazine: Should Your First Airplane Be a Taildragger?
• FLYING Magazine: Building Time in a Taildragger
• FLYING Magazine: Airworthiness Directive on Vintage Piper Models
• Plane + Pilot: Wake Up to Wake Hazards
• The Aviation Consumer: Piper PA-12 Super Cruise
• The Aviation Consumer: Used Taildraggers: Demand, Prices Up