# What was the N-number of Jimmy Stewart's Tri-Pacer? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 20, 2013, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843 "2013-02-20T00:43:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/1 "2013-02-20T00:43:03Z")
Jimmy Stewart was a pilot as well as an actor. What was the registration number of his Piper Tri-Pacer? ---
**Author:** ![ducati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cc9497/32.png) [@ducati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ducati)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/2 "2013-02-20T03:20:21Z")
I think I’d give the [airport](http://www.jimmystewartairport.com/)a call, then perhaps the [museum](http://www.jimmy.org/about). Surely there’s a picture somewhere between them! But you did that already, didn’t you. :dubious: If they fail you… > **[SERP AI](https://serp.ai/)** > > SERP AI is an community-driven, collection of artificial intelligence, machine learning & data science tools, courses, information, data & more. > **[ShortWingPipers.Org](http://www.shortwingpipers.org/)** > > On Line Community and Technical Information for Short Wing Piper Aircraft I’m falling asleep. I made it almost to the end of the internet, and couldn’t find anything. Good Luck! ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/3 "2013-02-20T08:15:24Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Jimmy Stewart was a pilot as well as an actor. What was the registration number of his Piper Tri-Pacer? what makes you think he flew a Tri-Pacer? It’s not something he would have trained in. That was a post war plane. He was a bomber pilot in WW-II and a ranking officer in the reserves. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/4 "2013-02-20T16:49:48Z")
My dad was in the FAA, and said he’d talk to Stewart occasionally in the course of his duties in the '70s. He said Stewart had a Tri-Pacer. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/5 "2013-02-20T18:01:08Z")
The FAA has a [tail number registry](http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/). Not the most user-friendly thing I’ve played with, but the info may be in there. I believe the proper model name is a Piper PA-22. Mr. Stewart has flown in and probably has owned several airplanes - the bio says he got his license in 1935. Unless you can get the info first-hand from the museum or airport, this will be a tough search as it seems a popular wing modification for Pipers is made by a company called Stewart. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/6 "2013-02-20T18:13:38Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > The FAA has a [tail number registry](http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/). Not the most user-friendly thing I’ve played with, but the info may be in there. I believe the proper model name is a Piper PA-22. > > Mr. Stewart has flown in and probably has owned several airplanes - the bio says he got his license in 1935. > > Unless you can get the info first-hand from the museum or airport, this will be a tough search as it seems a popular wing modification for Pipers is made by a company called Stewart. I think it was a PA-18 Super Cub. This [newspaper article](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1298&dat=19770519&id=H-FNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MYsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6817,2526057) mentions a photo of it, but doesn’t reproduce the photo, sadly. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/7 "2013-02-20T18:45:23Z")
I can only wonder why a man of Jimmy Stewart’s intelligence would \*buy \*a Tri-Pacer. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/8 "2013-02-20T19:20:42Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > I think it was a PA-18 Super Cub. This [newspaper article](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1298&dat=19770519&id=H-FNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=MYsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6817,2526057) mentions a photo of it, but doesn’t reproduce the photo, sadly. Maybe dad was wrong, but I’m sure he said it was a Tri-Pacer. Or maybe the newspaper was wrong. (‘Piper Cub’ is what some people still call _any_ small airplane. Though specifying ‘Super Cub’ makes it more believable.) Or maybe he had more than one plane. > [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > I can only wonder why a man of Jimmy Stewart’s intelligence would \*buy \*a Tri-Pacer. From the article: > [@Jimmy Stewart](#): > > It’s a wonderful plane because it takes your mind off everything else. You can’t think of anything else but flying it. You have to keep your mind on what you’re doing. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/9 "2013-02-20T21:46:41Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Maybe dad was wrong, but I’m sure he said it was a Tri-Pacer. Or maybe the newspaper was wrong. (‘Piper Cub’ is what some people still call _any_ small airplane. Though specifying ‘Super Cub’ makes it more believable.) Or maybe he had more than one plane. Possibly they got it wrong but the article described a plane (a Super Cub) whose predecessor was the VW of airplanes. That would be the Cub. And a cub isn’t doing 100 mph on a good day. It’s VNE is 87 mph. So I think the article accurately described the plane. He originally owned a Stinson 105 which was a tail dragger he flew cross country to visit his parents. Given his wealth and flying skills the Super Cub represents a flying experience akin to driving an MG while the Tri-Pacer represents more of a station wagon with the same performance. About the only thing the Tri-Pacer shares of the Cub is a clipped version of the wing and maybe the tail. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/10 "2013-02-20T22:02:48Z")
References to his Super Cub [here](http://books.google.com/books?id=CbXUXfJuA9sC&pg=PA189&lpg=PA189&dq=jimmy+stewart,super+cub&source=bl&ots=UWrXkZ06Mc&sig=KeklI0GxtlRUKdGDnShC8HjznYs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=-UQlUYD_PIPSqQGPkYGYBg&ved=0CD0Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=jimmy%20stewart%2Csuper%20cub&f=false) and [here](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1356&dat=19980325&id=3eRPAAAAIBAJ&sjid=WQgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4382,690213). ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/11 "2013-02-20T22:19:13Z")
From the first link I gave it says he also owned a P-51 which won an air race (piloted by someone else). It also describes his lifestyle as relatively simple. He drove a Volvo for the leg room. The Super Cub would have been the perfect plane to knock around in and experience flying in all it’s glory. Good visibility and the ability to fly with the doors open. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/12 "2013-02-20T22:29:05Z")
[This thread](http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/general_aviation/print.main?id=1463481) on [Airliners.net](http://Airliners.net) says he owned a PA-18-150 Super Cub. Coincidentally, there is a record of a PA-18-150 owned by a James Stewart… but it appears Mr Stewart [crashed it in 2003 in Alaska](http://aircrashed.com/aircraft/aANC04LA002.shtml), so it wasn’t the right person. (He was uninjured, if you were wondering.) [Another record of the same plane](http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~akanchor/AirJ.htm). It was built in 1955. Could it possibly be Jimmy’s plane? Did he have a relative (grandson?) also named James who could have inherited it? Total speculation… and probably nothing more than coincidence. [N3573P](http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/NNum_Results.aspx?NNumbertxt=N3573P). Seems the other Mr Stewart is still flying it. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/13 "2013-02-20T22:35:30Z")
Too late to edit, but Jimmy Stewart’s grandsons’ surname is [Merritt](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000071/bio). So forget I mentioned the dude in Alaska. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2013, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/14 "2013-02-20T22:55:50Z")
you could ask the [Jimmy Stewart Museum](http://www.jimmy.org/node) Curator or the [Jimmy Stewart Airport](http://www.jimmystewartairport.com/) which has an annual Jimmy Stewart festival. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/15 "2013-02-21T00:13:47Z")
[The Super Cub was sold in 1982](http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1988-01-04/features/8801010847_1_james-maitland-stewart-statue-stewart-s)if that helps the search. "There are signs, however, that the years have taken their toll. Stewart`s hair is a thinning gray (he wears a hairpiece in public but not at home) and he must use a hearing aid. He had to give up flying his Super Cub airplane in 1982. `I found it hard to understand communications from the tower,` he admits. `I miss it terribly.` ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/16 "2013-02-21T14:34:11Z")
Looks like I was wrong about it being a PA-22. Of course, I’m ‘remembering’ a comment from over three decades ago. I’m curious about where the airplane is now. (I get curious about such things.) I’ll contact the museum when I get a chance. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2013, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-n-number-of-jimmy-stewarts-tri-pacer/650843/17 "2013-02-21T16:52:31Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Looks like I was wrong about it being a PA-22. Of course, I’m ‘remembering’ a comment from over three decades ago. > > I’m curious about where the airplane is now. (I get curious about such things.) I’ll contact the museum when I get a chance. He may have owned both. A Tri-Pacer is an extremely easy plane to fly and if he wanted to take 4 people out for a ride that was a good plane for it and it could also have been a rental or a club plane. I spent a couple of hours looking for the Super Cub tail number and couldn’t find anything. You have my curiosity up.