How was the Aeronca C-2 received?

Short answer

Well: 164 units of the C-2 were sold in the depths of the Great Depression, between 1930 and 1931, and they helped drive the growth of private aviation in the United States. Its price of $1,555, later $1,245, put flying within reach of an ordinary private citizen. The open fuselage earned it the nickname Flying Bathtub.

Published: November 1, 2026 · Updated: November 1, 2026 · Edited by Above Ten Thousand · Editorial policy

Aeronca C-2

164 units in the depths of the Depression

Aeronca sold 164 affordable C-2s at the hardest point of the Great Depression, between 1930 and 1931, and those sales helped drive the growth of private aviation in the United States. The price was low: $1,555 and later $1,245, which brought the cost of flying down to a level that a private citizen might be able to reach. The C designation came from the company having previously been incorporated as the Cincinnati Aeronautical Corporation.

Nicknames: from flying bathtub to Razorback

The C-2 had an unusual, almost frivolous design, with an open-pod fuselage that inspired its nickname, The Flying Bathtub. It was also known as the "Airknocker" and the "Razorback".

Records with a minimal aircraft

One of the surviving examples set seven records, five of them in the seaplane category. The C-2 was the first aircraft to be refuelled from a moving car. Its range was 240 miles (384 km, 210 nmi).