The Cub is Piper Aircraft's second most-produced model after the PA-28 Cherokee series (>32,000 produced) with over 20,000 built in the United States.

Sponsored by William T. Piper, a Bradford industrialist and investor, the affordable E-2 was meant to encourage greater interest in aviation.

[5] Although sales were initially slow, about 1,200 J-2s were produced before a fire in the Piper factory, a former silk mill in Bradford, Pennsylvania, ended its production in 1938.

After Piper moved his company from Bradford to Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, the J-3, which featured further changes by Jamouneau, replaced the J-2.

[6] Several alternative air-cooled engines, typically flat-fours, powered the J-3 Cubs, designated J3C when using the Continental A series,[7] J3F using the Franklin 4AC,[8] and J3L with the Lycoming O-145.

[10] The outbreak of hostilities in Europe in 1939, along with the growing realization that the United States might soon be drawn into World War II, resulted in the formation of the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP).

The Piper J-3 Cub became the primary trainer aircraft of the CPTP and played an integral role in its success, achieving legendary status.

By war's end, 80% of all United States military pilots had received their initial flight training in Piper Cubs.

On April 29, 1941, all 48 Flitfire aircraft, one for each of the 48 states that made up the country at that time, flew into La Guardia Field for a dedication and fundraising event which included Royal Navy officers from the battleship HMS Malaya, in New York for repairs, as honored guests.

The L-4 Grasshopper was mechanically identical to the J-3 civilian Cub, but was distinguishable by the use of a Plexiglas greenhouse skylight and rear windows for improved visibility, much like the Taylorcraft L-2 and Aeronca L-3 also in use with the US armed forces.

[20][21] All L-4 models, as well as other tandem-seat light aircraft from Aeronca and Taylorcraft, were collectively nicknamed "Grasshoppers", although any liaison plane, regardless of manufacturer, was often referred to as a 'Cub'.

The L-4 was primarily employed in World War II for artillery spotting and training liaison pilots, but short-range reconnaissance, medical evacuation, and courier or supply missions were not uncommon.

For these and other operations, the pilot generally carried both an observer and 25-pound (11 kg) communications radio, a load that sometimes exceeded the plane's specified gross weight.

[18] After the Allied breakout in France, L-4s were occasionally equipped with improvised racks (usually in pairs or quartets) of infantry bazookas for attacking enemy vehicles.

[25] An icon of the era and of American general aviation, the J-3 Cub has long been loved by pilots and nonpilots alike, with thousands still in use.

[29] The L-4 was in service in many of the same roles it had performed during World War II, such as artillery spotting, forward air control and reconnaissance.

The new aircraft are actually modeled on the PA-11, though the Legend company does sell an open-cowl version with the cylinder heads exposed, like the J-3 Cub.

[30] The aircraft has been popular with flying schools — especially from the pre-World War II existence of the Civilian Pilot Training Program using them in the United States — and remains so with private individuals, into the 21st century.