Do their Cubs have electrical systems? If not do they use handheld radios? I’m not passing judgment, I’m just curious because I’ve read they do have radios and I’ve read they don’t.
It is a simple and relatively inexpensive modification to install an antenna and ground plane on the wing or fuselage. A hand held aviation band radio connected to the antenna is usually equivalent to a nav/com. I’ve done this in two Aeronca 7AC. I did it as the owner and made a log book entry. It gave me peace of mind. But I must admit that my very rare near collisions in the airport environment were in fully equipped small singles.
Normally no, a Cub doesn’t have an electrical system. At least the early ones didn’t. Now how would one comply with the ADSB mandate? I’m not being a Monday morning quarterback here, but me thinks that by now, ADSB shouldn’t be an option anymore. This event proves that.
Even if a plane doesn’t have ADSB-Out - it was my understanding that if there is radar coverage in the area that picks them up, they will still be displayed for those who have ADSB-IN. The rub would be if they are in a remote area without radar coverage or possibly too low to be picked up. Is my understanding correct?
Not exactly - if the cub didn’t have a transponder at all, there would be nothing about it contained in the ADS-B traffic broadcast.
When I was last there (~2017, give/take a year), they only had a battery-powered headset intercom system, no radio.
And also even if they were picked up on radar, it’s not exactly a real-time position. It takes some time to transmit it back out via ADS-R (if I remember my acronyms correctly).
Chance of being in the mid air is quite low, but is one of the biggest fears of every pilot. Regardless of your skill or hours in the air, you can be taken out by another aircraft even when your doing everything right.