![Backcountry manners intact: the ULT sits on a grass strip with the turbine spun up, built on the STOL-capable Carbon Cub UL airframe. [Credit: CubCrafters]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-20-at-11.12.13-AM.jpg?resize=1024,683)
The Cub has always meant a piston engine up front but CubCrafters is changing that.
The Yakima, Washington, company has introduced the Carbon Cub ULT, a turbine-powered evolution of its Carbon Cub UL that trades the Rotax for a small turboprop—and, in the process, becomes the first U.S.-manufactured turboprop aircraft a Sport Pilot can legally fly under the FAA’s new MOSAIC rules. No type rating, no special endorsement required.
Power comes from TurboTech’s new TP-R90, a regenerative turboprop that the company says delivers the smoothness and reliability of turbine power with fuel economy comparable to the gas-burning Carbon Cub UL. Full FADEC control handles the details: push-button starting, single-lever power management, and an automated start sequence mean the pilot workload looks nothing like a legacy turbine.
“Despite the turbine engine, it still feels like a Carbon Cub, just with a very different powerplant experience,” said CubCrafters Vice President Brad Damm. “The simplicity is probably what impresses people the most. There’s no mixture, no carb heat, no concerns about shock cooling—start it, set the power you want, and go fly.”
There is a fuel-supply logic to the switch, too. The ULT burns jet-A, which Damm notes is often easier to find than 100LL—and a hedge against the industry’s planned move away from leaded avgas by the end of the decade. Built on the latest-generation lightweight Carbon Cub UL airframe, the ULT keeps the STOL manners that made the platform a backcountry favorite.
![Air-to-air: the turbine-powered Carbon Cub ULT flies near the snow-capped peak of Mount Adams during flight testing. [Credit CubCrafters]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-20-at-11.11.47-AM.jpg?resize=1024,683)
![The story up front: with the cowling off, the TurboTech TP-R90 regenerative turboprop is exposed at the nose. [Credit: CubCrafters]](https://www.kitplanes.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Screenshot-2026-07-20-at-11.12.04-AM.jpg?resize=1024,682)
The Quick Specs
- Engine: TurboTech TP-R90 regenerative turboprop, full FADEC
- Fuel: Jet-A
- Eligibility: Sport Pilot–flyable under MOSAIC; no type rating or endorsement
- Status: In flight testing at Yakima; deliveries anticipated in 2027
The Carbon Cub ULT makes its public debut at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh later this month. Full show programming is posted at eaa.org.
