1965 American Champion 7ECA Citabria

It just looks like fun sitting there on the ramp. The Citabria (that’s “airbatic” spelled backwards) speaks to pilots who want to test out their skills in aerobatic flying, or just have fun flying low and slow with friends into grass strips. American Champion is still making the series, but the original offers up a good deal for the right pilot.

This 1965 Citabria comes with its last Poly-Fiber recovering accomplished in 2002-2004, with rebuilt wings and a new wood spar in 2004 as well. The aircraft has 1,173 hours on it, with the Continental O-200 clocking 837 hours since major overhaul. The seller says it’s flown 48 hours in the last 6 months, making it far from a hangar queen. It has a uAvionix skyBeacon for ADS-B compliance.

For an asking price of $45,000, this Visalia, California-based tailwheel star can be yours.

READ MORE: American Champion Citabria, Super Decathlon, Scout

Interested in more deals like this? Check out AircraftForSale.com and our new PlanePrice feature that gives you a window into the opportunities that are out there.

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Decathlon Xtreme
Basic Price:	$209,900
Powerplant:	10 hp Lycoming AEIO-390
Lenght:	22 ft. 11 in.
Height:	7 ft. 7 in.
Wing Span:	30 ft. 9 in.
Wing Area (sq. ft.):	164
Wing Loading (lbs./sq. ft.):	11.9
Power Loading (acrobatic, lbs./hp):	8.6
Seats:	2, Tandem
Empty Weight (lbs.):	1320
Normal Category Gross Weight (lbs.):	1950
Acrobatic Category Gross Weight (lbs.):	1800
Useful Load (lbs.):	630
Fuel Capacity (gals.):	40
Oil Capacity (qts.):	10
PERFORMANCE
Acrobatic Limit Load (Gs):	+6, -5
Takeoff Distance, Ground Roll (ft.):	520
Takeoff Distance, 50-Foot Obstacle (ft.):	957
Rate Of Climb, Sea Level (fpm):	1498
Maximum Speed, Sea Level (mph):	161
Cruise Speed (75% Power, mph):	149
Fuel Consumption (gph):	12.0
Service Ceiling (ft.):	20,000
Landing Distance, 50-Foot Obstacle (ft.):	1346
Landing Distance, Ground Roll (ft.):	542
Vne (Never Exceed, mph CAS):	200
Vso (Stall, mph IAS):	58
Source:	American Champion

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I love orange. It’s the color of excitement and adventure. In 1910, when William S. Harley and Arthur Davidson decided to design a logo for their then-fledgling motorcycle company, orange was the color they chose. And when rockabilly great Eddie Cochran belted out “Summertime Blues” from every AM radio station in the country in 1958, that incessant guitar lick came from an orange, model 6120 Gretsch guitar—one of the most recognizable in rock ‘n’roll history. Even nature reserves orange for only the most special of offerings: sunsets, habanero peppers, clown fish and Cheetos. An orange airplane, then, is really something.

The Super Decathlon has a storied history, and part of the airplane’s considerable charm comes from that lineage. First conceived in 1970 by Champion Aircraft Corporation, the Decathlon 8KCAB was a derivative of the company’s famous Citabria (that’s “airbatic” spelled backward). It was created as a stronger and more capable airplane that could handle outside maneuvers and extended inverted flight. The Decathlon featured an inverted fuel and oil system and a major redesign of the Citabria wing, resulting in a semi-symmetric airfoil that gave it far better inverted performance. Bellanca Aircraft Corporation bought Champion Aircraft in 1972 and sold a smattering of Decathlons through 1976, before adding a more powerful 180 hp engine and other improvements, resulting in the Super Decathlon. The design went through several manufacturers’ hands throughout the ’80s aircraft sales slump, and was eventually acquired by American Champion Aircraft in 1990, where it has been in production ever since.

This particular morning, I was to meet Super Decathlon owner Michelle Kole, who had just taken delivery of her beautiful orange 8KCAB, complete with sunbursts and invasion stripes. Too often, we writers take an airplane up with a demo pilot, go through the specs, and perform a list of maneuvers from our notepads, then come back for a few touch-and-goes. For me, it’s hard to find the “soul” of the airplane that way. But this time we had a mission, and it was a good one because it involved food and scenery. We were flying some 130 miles south along the Pacific coast from Santa Monica, Calif., on a quest for the best vegan potato tacos anywhere. I’m not even vegan, but the thought of something new was enticing.

Like its seminal cousin, the Aeronca Champ (Champion Aircraft acquired the Champ design in 1954), the Super Decathlon is a tandem aircraft with stick controls and a tailwheel. One major difference between the “vintage” Decathlons and the newer ones is the aluminum wing spar that replaced the original wood spar. Today’s Super D is still made with fabric-covered metal tubing, and sports aluminum landing gear instead of spring steel. Like the 1940s Champ, the Decathlon retains the triangular welded fuselage truss, giving it proven strength and rigidity.

When Kole had me roll open the door to the vintage-era hangar and I saw her factory-fresh Super D for the first time, the effect was magical. Its burnt-orange color contrasting against the velvet blue of the morning sky gave it a decidedly retro look, and Kole had the good taste to add white upholstered seats, making the airplane look fabulously classic.

The Garmin 696 with solid-state ADAHRS and a fully capable panel makes the Super Decathlon both an aerobatic and cross-country platform.

The $100 Taco

Climbing into a Decathlon happens from the wide single door on the right side. Access is generous, and larger pilots would find it easy to get into. The 30-inch cabin width feels expansive, even in the rear seat. Of course, this being an aerobatic aircraft, the visibility is fantastic. I notice that the deck angle is relatively low for a taildragger, and find that even us smaller pilots can see pretty well over the panel with a cushion or two. That’s a bonus on landing, and may be one reason why Decathlons are considered one of the easier tailwheel airplanes to land. With electrical switches on a side panel overhead, visibility to the front and sides is uncluttered, and the overhead window adds a huge chunk of sky to the view. Taxiing with S-turns is easiest, though taller pilots can just peer over the nose without it.

Takeoff is comfortable and quick, with the tail coming up in 400 feet or so, and the wheels coming off at about 56 mph. It’s intuitive having a stick in your right hand and a throttle on your left, so control comes easy and feels natural. This Super D is new, and it sticks to the book numbers pretty closely, giving us an 1,100 fpm climb at 75 mph with a nose angle of about 18 degrees. We’re pushing a little harder than usual to accommodate the Los Angeles Class B airspace requirements. The book says max climb rate is 1,280 fpm.

Though everybody thinks of the Super Decathlon for aerobatics, it becomes apparent that this also is a fine cross-country machine. The seats are comfortable, and with the exceptional visibility and 145 mph cruise speed at 75% power that I’m seeing on the panel, the Super D delivers a great long-distance ride. Fuel consumption is typical, ranging from just under 8 gph when leaned at altitude, to 11 gph and greater when flying low and pushing for a little speed.

As we settle into cruise, Kole tunes in some ’80s rock on XM radio. With Loverboy reminding us, “Everybody’s workin’ for the weekend,” I take the stick and get to savor the wonderful handling this airplane is known for. I find the controls as light as the tendrils of egg white in a delicate soufflé, though Kole likes to call them “crisp and twangy.” While an Extra 300 does have lighter stick forces, it’s not fair to compare this airplane to that or to a Pitts, because it’s not meant to be those airplanes, and it doesn’t need to be.

Looking out on the tarmac, our Super Decathlon sits ready to pounce, like a new kitten eyeing a feather on a string. It’s an airplane that evokes the past but
sits in the present.

Flight instructors long ago discovered that the Super Decathlon is a supernal aerobatic training platform because of—and not despite—its draggy design and power loading. Kole—who’s a CFI and is training for aerobatic competitions—agrees. “What I love about this airplane is that it makes you work for it. It teaches you to be a good aerobatic pilot because you can’t just power through maneuvers.” Kole is talking about energy management; it’s a concept that Super D pilots learn early.

The Super Decathlon has a power loading of 10 lbs./hp. That means you can’t rely on power alone to motor you through sloppy maneuvers. Instead, the Super D teaches pilots finesse and precision and turns out—most agree—a better pilot as a result. In comparison, a Pitts S2C has a power loading of 6.25 lbs./hp, while the Extra 330 has a power loading of 5.7 lbs./hp. “You can get sloppy with the rudder in a Pitts or an Extra, but the Decathlon won’t let you get away with that,” Kole adds. “It just won’t do what you want it to.”

Another strength of the Super Decathlon is its benign handling characteristics; the airplane doesn’t have any scary surprises up its sleeve in any flight regime. Loops and rolls are a joy and easily executed with minimal G-load (4 in a typical loop). Stalls are straight ahead with no tendency to break off to either side, and spins are fast but easily recoverable with deliberate, positive elevator input. This is an honest airplane that doesn’t let students get away with sloppiness, but doesn’t scare them into submission. It’s gentle and fun—a whole lot of fun.

The Super Decathlon is flown solo from the front seat, and the wide door and low deck angle make getting in and out an easy maneuver.

With the delicious potential of good tacos filling my mind, I was ready to land. The Super D is as docile as expected, with good visibility over the nose and no nasty tricks when transitioning to the runway. Kole prefers a hybrid technique that’s a combination of a three-point and a wheel landing, as you would land a DC-3. It keeps visibility good throughout the flare. Even hampered by a pretty good crosswind at Montgomery field near San Diego, the Super D takes it with aplomb. That’s another reason why you’ll see Decathlons just about anywhere that offers tailwheel training; it’s a solid teaching platform with predictable handling.

The 8KCAB has a base price of $164,000, so it’s within reach of pilots who want aerobatic thrills and a good airplane for longer trips. It gives you nearly the same aerobatic bang as some other airplanes in this category that hover in the half-million-dollar area. As usual, there’s a vast array of options, and the airplane comes well equipped with a Lycoming AEIO-360-H1B 180 hp engine, inverted fuel and oil systems, a Hartzell constant-speed, 74-inch propeller (Kole’s has the two-blade MT prop), and a 370-pound payload capability with full fuel in the Normal category.

Back at Montgomery, Kole and I are sitting down to the long-anticipated meal with a view across the runway. Potato tacos may sound strange outside of California, but they’re flavorful beyond measure. Looking out on the tarmac, our Super Decathlon sits ready to pounce, like a new kitten eyeing a feather on a string. No nostalgia toy, it’s an airplane that evokes something from the past but sits squarely in the present.

Mission Complete

I took the controls for takeoff. Montogomery is tricky because of the complex airspace—both civilian and military—all around it, so I try to remain focused while Kole gives me the lowdown on what to expect. We roll down the runway, and the takeoff is a breeze.

“Thaaat’s it. Nice. Okay, that looks good,” says Kole in a vocal tone I hadn’t yet heard on our flight. “Oh my gosh,” I chided her, “You just used your instructor voice!”
“No, I didn’t do that. What are you talking about?”

“Yeah, you did! That was awesome,” I shot back. “It was like I was 16 years old back in the Cessna 150.”

Of course, Kole had reverted to her instructor role, talking me through the takeoff. It was nice to be in student mode again, and I appreciated her guidance, even though I chivvied her about it on the way back. The Super Decathlon is that kind of airplane; as happy doing takeoffs and landings as it is upside down or powering through an outside loop. For many pilots, the Super D is an end in itself; not a stepping stone.

It’s interesting that an airplane like the Super D can not only deliver good aerobatic performance, but provide a solid cross-country platform, too. Traditionally, aerobatic airplanes are lousy machines for long trips, but the Super D is a pleasantly fast, comfortable airplane for long flights. “For my trips, it’s perfect.” says Kole. “It’s fast enough.” With a faster cruise than a Cessna 172 and great visibility all around, it makes a good medium-haul partner.

Back in the cockpit, with George Harrison’s voice coaxing us into an easy silence and the world’s problems far below us, we followed the shoreline home while I played some more with the airplane. Coming into Santa Monica, Kole slipped hard and steep to lose 4,500 feet in about a mile. It was another “Whoopee!” moment. The orange airplane settled onto the runway with all eyes on it, reminding everyone that it’s about as fun an airplane as there ever was.

We Asked You!
Do you have any experience with aerobatics?

So You Want To Own A Plane?
Michelle Kole was a first-time airplane buyer with a changing mission and a wide variety of aircraft on her short list. A chance opportunity led her in a different direction from her original buying plan, and she ended up purchasing a new American Champion Super Decathlon from the factory. We talked to Kole about what it’s like to become a new aircraft owner, and the scary and exciting moments along the way to fulfilling her dreams of ownership. Q. Tell us about how you chose the Super Decathlon. A. I knew I wanted to be an airplane owner. There were so many choices and it was confusing; nothing out there was speaking to me. I was all over the place as far as the types of airplanes I thought about buying. I considered a Beechcraft Baron, a Cessna 182 and a Bonanza, among others. I knew I really wanted to own an airplane. Q. Did you have a specific mission in mind? A. It kept changing. I knew I wanted something I could eventually instruct in, and I knew I would be going places with it. But I didn’t really have it narrowed down to a specific mission. Q. How did you end up with the Super Decathlon? A. I was selected to be in a documentary called AcroCamp that filmed during the time I was shopping for an airplane. In that film, I flew a Pitts, Citabria and a Super Decathlon; it was my first time in each. I had never thought of flying a taildragger before—it just seemed too difficult. But I eventually soloed the Citabria, and I really liked it. I felt like I could handle it. The Super Decathlon seemed too challenging. But I knew I could grow with the Super D. I found out the price was right; I could buy a new one for about half of the other airplanes I was considering. I ended up flying about eight hours in the Super D during filming for the movie, and I decided that’s what I wanted. Q. Did you have any special criteria in choosing an airplane? A. I had to know where the airframe had been—and had not been! Buying a new airplane made that easy. Also, the Super D is safe and predictable, and it feels that way to me. The main thing is that it requires you to be a good aerobatic pilot to make the figures look nice. You have to work for them and actually fly the airplane. The Super D is also a comfortable airplane; it’s fast enough for my trips. It’s the perfect airplane for me. Q. What was the actual buying experience like? A. I was a first-time buyer, and I really didn’t know how to buy an airplane. I started at the American Champion website. There I found a dealer—Bob Hannah and Kasey Lindsey of Northwest Backcountry Aircraft in Caldwell, Idaho—who were tremendously helpful. I could not have done it without them. They were amazing. They answered all kinds of questions, helped me select what options made sense and which ones didn’t, and just guided me through the whole process. Q. What was the most difficult part of the buying process? A. Choosing the paint scheme and waiting for the airplane to be delivered! I don’t have that female gene that knows what colors look good together. Plus the color samples they give you aren’t real paint, so it was really hard. As far as waiting, I put my deposit down in May or June, hoping to get in on the July manufacturing “slot”—they make about four airplanes a month. But I didn’t get the airplane until September due to a bunch of issues that weren’t the dealer’s fault: UPS had damaged a replacement cowling after the original cracked when they flew the airplane from the factory to the dealer. The third one (cowling) finally made it. All that time, the airplane was just sitting in Idaho. Bob and Kasey took a week to fly it and get everything tweaked until it was just right. They made sure it was ready for me. Q. Tell me about taking delivery of your airplane. A. I just couldn’t believe that this beautiful machine was mine! I couldn’t stop looking at it; I don’t have kids but I did baby-talk to it, and I just couldn’t believe it! I flew commercial to Idaho with a friend that was supposed to ride back with me and teach me the Garmin 696, but he ended up sleeping the whole way. Q. Were there any surprises? A. Aside from the process taking longer than I thought, and the whole cowling debacle, the cost is something I should have looked at more carefully. The initial pricing was low, but you got a very basic airplane for that. It seemed there were a lot of options that maybe should have been standard, and the price crept up. Oh, and I just got the tax bill, and had to have my friend who is an accountant look at it because I was so shocked. Q. What is it like being an owner for the first time? A. The flight home taught me a lot of things. With all the stuff they give you with a new airplane, and with my passenger and everything, we were at max gross, and the airplane flew completely different with all that weight in the tail. Plus I was out of my brain with excitement—I don’t know—and I didn’t do weight and balance, which I now realize was dumb of me. The first landing, the tail swerved more than I was used to, and I almost lost it. Later, the engine quit a few feet off the ground because the mixture had been adjusted too lean at the factory based on their “best guess” for sea level. The airplane felt completely different from the one I had flown. There were a lot of things that kind of discouraged me and I thought, “I’m not sure I can fly this airplane.” But when I got back, I grabbed an instructor I trusted and made him fly with me until I regained my confidence. It’s part of the whole buying experience, I think. Q. Has owning this airplane changed your flying habits? A. Absolutely! I fly more often. I feel surer as a pilot and I learn more about my airplane every day. I know what my engine sounds like—what’s normal and what’s not. Good pilots say the airplane will eventually fit like a glove and become an extension of you. I don’t know if I’m there yet, but I feel like I’m getting to know my airplane’s personality. I don’t know how to describe that feeling, but it feels good. Q. Any advice for those who are thinking about buying? A. Do your homework. Take time to look into the airplane you’re considering. Learn about it from owners’ groups or others who already own one. Owning your own airplane is an amazing feeling. I was out there today with the sun and the clouds and I thought, “It doesn’t get any better than this.” I think that’s pure happiness.

The post Dreams Of Ownership Fullfilled! appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

American Champion Super Decathlon
Engine make:	Lycoming AEIO-360-H1B
Horsepower:	180 @ 2700 rpm
Length (ft.):	22.9
Height (ft.):	7.7
Wingspan (ft.):	32
Wing loading (lbs./sq. ft.):	10.64
Power loading (lbs./hp):	10
Cabin width (in.):	30
Cabin height (in.):	47
Empty weight (lbs.):	1340
Gross weight (Acrobatic, lbs.):	1800
Gross weight (Normal, lbs.):	1950
Useful load (lbs.):	610
Payload, full fuel (lbs.):	376
Fuel capacity (gals.):	40
Baggage capacity (lbs.):	100
G-load factor:	+6/-5
PERFORMANCE
Max cruise speed (mhp)	155
Vs (mph):	53
Rate of climb (fpm):	1280
Takeoff ground roll (ft.):	495
Landing ground roll (ft.):	425
Fuel consumption (5000 ft., gph):	9.5

The post American Champion Super Decathlon appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

I was standing beside the runway at Fox River Airport in Rochester, Wis., home airport to American Champion Aircraft (www.amerchampionaircraft.com), to see the company’s stalwart 8GCBC Scout do its Elvis impersonation—as in Elvis the famous firefighting S-64 Aircrane water bomber. A call on a handheld confirmed we were in position. From the north, Jerry Mehlhaff Sr., the company’s owner and president, came boring in on the centerline in N125WB, the prototype Scout “Water Bomber,” dropping to about 150 feet. Just past the threshold, he released 100 gallons of water from its belly. The 800 pounds of liquid hit the runway with a loud slap, soaking an area about the size of a football field.

Can 100 gallons make a splash in aerial firefighting, where blazes can cover tens of thousands of acres? One is tempted to tell the trusty Scout, “Don’t quit your day job; no shame in simply being one of the world’s premier bush planes.” Despite the existence of such big bombers as Elvis and Evergreen International’s 747-200 Supertanker, back on the ground, Jerry Sr. made a case for using light aircraft as first responders “so they can get the fire when it starts, when it’s five acres or 10, not 5,000 acres or to the point when you need a 747 to try to slow it down.”

Inside the company’s offices, on the back of a hangar and across from American Champion’s three production buildings, Jerry Sr. told me, “The intent is to have airplanes close to the fire, and have them fly in groups of five or six. If there’s no airport nearby, the state patrol can block off 3,000 feet of highway, bring a tanker truck in, fill the airplane in less than two minutes. Every airplane could make five or six drops an hour.”

The Scout Water Bomber was conceived by Steve Green, a design engineer and former race-car driver from Canton, Ohio, who had been developing a light firefighting aircraft when he came across a Scout. “I said, ’This thing has great flight characteristics. This actually could be the platform,'” Green recounted. He contacted Jerry Sr., went to the factory, talked to the staff engineers, “and the next thing I knew, he built this aircraft, and it is exceptional.”

The Scout’s potential as a firefighter aside, the two-place, tandem taildragger already has earned its props in more than 35 years of service: It’s prized by private owners, commercial operators and public agencies alike as a rugged, land-anywhere, STOL workhorse. The basic aircraft has changed little during that time, but a variety of improvements, upgrades and options make today’s Scout far more user-friendly and capable than when it debuted in 1974. Its continued popularity is a testament to both the original design and the current management of this family-owned enterprise. Jerry Sr.’s former wife, Charlene, is the company’s vice president; their son, Jerry Jr., an aerospace engineer and FAA-certified DER (designated engineering representative), is the company’s head of engineering. And with five aircraft models in production in addition to the Scout, certification of the Water Bomber is just one item on the company’s to-do list.

“You’re never stuck doing the same project over and over again,” said Jerry Jr. about life at American Champion.

Their airplanes come from good stock. The Scout and other American Champion aircraft all descend from the classic 7AC Aeronca Champion (Champ), introduced by the Aeronca Aircraft Corp. of Middletown, Ohio, in 1945. Champion Aircraft (no relation to American Champion Aircraft) bought the Champ design in 1954, three years after production ceased, and from the Champ, derived the aerobatic 7ECA Citabria (which is “airbatic” spelled backward). In 1970, Bellanca Aircraft Corp. acquired Champion Aircraft and subsequently introduced two new models based on the Citabria: the 8KCAB Decathlon and, in 1974, the 8GCBC Scout. (The alphanumeric model designations defy simple explanation, or even understanding. “I don’t know how they came up with KCAB,” Jerry Sr. said during a discourse on model taxonomy. “It’s so confusing.”) Bellanca ended production in 1980, and the line went through a series of owners before Jerry Sr. bought the rights in 1988 and resumed production in 1990 under the American Champion Aircraft banner.

The 8GCBC’s all-aluminum frame yields improved strength, performance and longevity.

I’ve spent hours of Scout time over rugged Western landscapes, landing on buttes, prairies and dry riverbeds. Flying a wildlife population survey in the Badlands of North Dakota, every bowl and draw in the survey area had to be scoured for deer, mountain goats and stray bison. That meant lots of yanking and banking in slow flight very close to the deck, as well as quick climbs over sharply rising terrain. A Scout is one of the few planes you can trust with that kind of flying.

The Scout Water Bomber will be a far different ride. The back-seat area is taken up by a formed plastic bladder for water and fire retardant. Gross weight will be 2,600 pounds, 450 pounds above its utility-category max weight. The bomber also has a flying tail that’s 25% larger than the certified Scout’s, to compensate for the aft CG loading. Though cutting edge in its own way, it does not represent the contemporary utility-category Scout. Fortunately, a brand-new production 8GCBC was in the hangar in front of the offices, awaiting delivery to a dealer.

From the outside, N101RA looks like a Scout of any vintage, with its squared-off front end, the straight lines of the sides, belly and vertical fin, and the simple spring gear struts. It stands on aluminum legs, which became standard in ’06, replacing the original steel gear. The new struts save 35 pounds and incorporate internal brake lines. Today’s Scouts also can be fitted with Alaskan Bushwheel’s Tundra Tires of up to 36 inches, which open soggier, rougher ground to the Scout, and increase the wing’s angle of attack during takeoff and landing, boosting STOL performance.

The wings themselves represent the biggest if least visible difference between legacy Scouts and American Champion’s version. Bellanca used wooden spars in the wings; American Champion’s Scout has all-aluminum frames, yielding more strength, better performance and increased longevity. (Aluminum-frame wings can be retrofitted on older Scouts.)

On the fuselage aft of the cabin, a baggage door opens to a more recent improvement: an optional extended rear baggage area introduced in ’07 that adds 36 inches and 30 pounds of cargo capacity.

The Scout comes standard with a two-blade, 76-inch Hartzell propeller, but choices have grown over the years. The three-blade, 72-inch Hartzell, which provides more ground clearance, has become a popular option since it was introduced in the mid-’90s, and weight-saving two- and three-blade, wood-core, composite MT propellers were added to the list of approved props in 2003.

What most distinguishes the modern Scout from its predecessors is the panel. Mind you, Scouts have sported digital avionics since the late 1990s, and customers can order custom packages—but digital engine monitoring and glass technology have been added to the mix. In 2005, J.P. Instruments’ EDM-930 became an option. From the left side of the panel, it tracks rpm and manifold pressure, fuel flow, electrical-system health and engine temperatures, and flashes alerts if parameters are exceeded. In 2008, Aspen Avionics’ Evolution EFD1000 PFD was certified in the Scout, turning it into a true glass-panel platform. Among other benefits, the optional Aspen installation saves about 11 pounds over the vacuum gyro system it replaces. When all potential weight savings are taken into account, the Scout has dropped some 55 to 60 pounds of empty weight in recent years.

After taking the Scout out of the hangar, we completed its preflight. The interior is nicely appointed with carpet and fabric and vinyl sidewalls. An optional wide rear bench seat, a Bellanca-era upgrade (quickly removable for extra cargo room), adds to the comfort. The throttle, prop and mixture controls are on the bottom left side of the panel. We primed and cranked the engine, and Jerry Sr. and I taxied to runway 1.

The Scout is powered by a 180 hp, carbureted O-360 Lycoming. The carbureted engine is less expensive than a fuel injected one, and most pilots who operate Scouts on floats prefer them because of concerns about vapor lock during hot starts associated with injected engines; few things are worse for a float pilot than being adrift on the water with a flooded engine.

On the takeoff roll with two notches of flaps (15 degrees) and 2,700 rpm at full throttle, the tail came off the ground at about 40 mph; we rotated at 45 mph and were airborne by 50 mph. At a 70 mph indicated climb, the VSI bounced around 1,100 fpm, and the Aspen PFD, with its airspeed and altitude tape readouts, made quick scans of the panel more productive than darting glances at steam gauges.

We leveled at 2,000 feet MSL and powered back to 24 squared, about 75% power, and let the airspeed build up. It reached about 130 mph indicated at a 10.4 gph fuel burn. That’s solid cruise performance for a STOL airplane, highlighting the wide operating envelope that has helped make it a success.

The checkerboard farmland of southern Wisconsin spread out in all directions below. The verdant fields made it hard to imagine a landscape covered in flames, or envision a Scout swooping in to the rescue. So I pulled the stick around as if I was flying knife-edge along a ridge, and maneuvered as if dodging towering flames to reach my drop point. But instead of demonstrating some firefighting capacity, N101RA’s response simply reminded me of the Scout’s nimble and fun-to-fly characteristics. Poking about the countryside, we moseyed over to Burlington Municipal Airport, a few miles southwest, and entered the pattern for runway 11. With light winds and 4,300 feet of runway, the landing was low on drama, but with three notches of flaps, the Scout demonstrated its excellent visibility over the nose on final.

After returning to Rochester, Jerry Sr. briefed me on the next upgrade for the Scout: Forward Vision’s EVS-100 infrared enhanced-vision system, expected to soon be certified for installation. That will add even more capability to its bush operations and also make the Water Bomber a more effective tool. “We can pick flames out through smoke or firemen surrounded by flames,” Jerry Sr. said.

As certification work continues on the aircraft, agencies in California, North Carolina and other states, eager for an effective and economical aerial firefighter, have expressed interest. The estimated operating cost is $150 per hour, including pilots’ pay ($40), while even a small firefighting helicopter, noted project architect Green, “costs $2,500 to $3,000 per hour; you can operate 20 Scouts for that.”

Jerry Sr. and I went flying again later that afternoon. The last landing was on turf at Rochester, between the paved runway and a cornfield. The Scout felt like it was luxuriating in its natural element as it trundled across the thick grass on rollout, rekindling my memories of alighting on rugged ground out West. And after getting reacquainted with the 8GCBC, I was sure it could handle anything asked of it, including performing as a professional Water Bomber and making people forget all about Elvis. Indeed, rather than a karaoke-caliber imitation, perhaps the aircraft could become the aerial firefighting world’s latest flame.

The post 8GCBC Scout: Up In Flames appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

8GCBC Scout
Engine make/model:	180 hp Lycoming O-360-C1G
Propeller type:	76-in., two-blade Hartzell (standard); 72-in., three-blade Hartzell (as reviewed)
Empty weight, std. (lbs.):	1400
Gross weight (lbs.):	2150
Useful load (lbs.):	750
Payload, full std. fuel (lbs.):	540
Fuel capacity (lbs.):	36 (standard); 72 (optional)
Wingspan:	36.2 ft.
Overall length:	23 ft.
Overall height:	9.7 ft.
Wing area (sq. ft.):	180
Wing loading (lbs./sq. ft.):	11.9
Power loading (lbs./hp):	11.9
Seating capacity:	2 (tandem)
PERFORMANCE
Vx (mph):	61
Vy (mph):	76
Vne (mph):	162
Vs (mph):	54
Vso (mph):	49
Max level speed, SL (mph):	140
Best rate of climb, SL (fpm):	1075
Service ceiling (ft.):	17,000
Takeoff ground roll (ft.):	490
Takeoff over 50 ft. obstacle (ft.):	1025
Landing ground roll (ft.):	420
Source: American Champion Aircraft

The post 8GCBC Scout appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

Greg Koontz is certainly one of those. An air show aviator for most of his life, Greg rebuilt a Cub when he was 18 and has been in the air show business ever since—nearly 40 years. Currently, he flies his signature American Champion Super Decathlon as practically an extension of his thoughts.

For those of us who have spent our share of time in the agile, little 8KCAB, flying with Koontz in his chosen air show mount is a revelation. He does maneuvers in the airplane with a precision that most of us will probably never be able to duplicate.

Operating out of Sky Country Lodge (www.skycountrylodge.com) in Ashville, Ala., Greg and his wife, Cora, run an unusual bed-and-breakfast flight school, which specializes in aerobatics, strangely enough. A Master CFI-Aerobatics, Koontz can take students as far as they wish to go, from a simple tailwheel checkout to a full-on aerobatic course including most of the maneuvers the Super Decathlon can perform.

I caught up with Koontz at 2008 Sun ‘n Fun in Lakeland, Fla., where I asked him first about his choice of air show airplane, the Super Decathlon.

“It’s a great teaching machine, and the economics make it a viable air show airplane as well,” says Koontz. “Not everyone appreciates that. It’s a little larger than the Pitts or Extra, and that makes it easy to see. It doesn’t have the power or the horizontal or vertical agility of the others, but I like it because it does most of the same maneuvers at a slower speed. This allows me to solve one of the biggest problems at air shows—keeping the act in front of the crowd.

“It’s also important to remember that many people at air shows aren’t pilots, and they may have a tough time appreciating a triple snap to a Lomcevak in an S2C. The Super doesn’t really do even a double snap, and I confine my air show routine to fairly conventional maneuvers that happen slowly enough that everyone can appreciate them.”

Last year, Koontz flew some 20 air shows, but he also instructed some 111 students in the ways of the Super, many through full tailwheel checkouts and on through his standard acro course—loops, rolls, hammerheads and spins. “I’m one of those instructors who’s bullish on tailwheel training,” says Koontz. “I’m convinced that familiarity with tailwheels produces a better pilot than just nosedraggers. A tailwheel checkout helps a pilot land any airplane well—conventional or tricycle gear.”

Koontz should know. He has more than 7,000 hours of instructing, most of it in tailwheels. He got his air show start in 1974, joining Colonel Ernie Moser’s Flying Circus out of St. Augustine, Fla. Koontz has flown a variety of air show acts over the years; most recently, he has become renowned for his Super Decathlon aerobatics and for his “World’s Smallest Airport” stunt in which he lands a Piper J-3 Cub on an iron grating atop a moving pickup truck.

Koontz views the Super Decathlon as ideal for air show crowds because it’s larger, and thus more visible than other airplanes, and it performs maneuvers at slightly slower speeds, keeping the act in front of the crowd

In the real world, Koontz has worked as a corporate jet pilot and has accumulated some 22,000 hours of flight time, much of it teaching pilots the ways of the Super Decathlon. He’s sponsored by American Champion, and the manufacturer is predictably enthusiastic about Koontz’s air show work, exposing the Super’s talents to thousands of pilots each year. There might be other pilots doing air shows in Super Decathlons, but I can’t think of one.

Unlike some other aerobatic airplanes, the 8KCAB is a supremely comfortable machine, 30 inches wide at the hips. For one thing, the airplane is well laid-out. All flight and system controls fall readily to hand, with all electrical switches mounted on a panel above the pilot’s left shoulder. Visibility from the front seat, with the overhead “eyebrow” windows, allows a view in practically every direction during acro. Trim is confined to the elevator, and it’s ridiculously uncomplicated, a direct connection to the stick. If you’re so inclined, you can easily control the airplane’s pitch with the trim control.

According to Koontz, the Super makes a great classroom for aerobatics, partially because its comparative lack of power demands that you learn good coordination and proper energy management. The Super sports an extremely comfortable tandem cabin, wide and tall, and easy to mount in either seat.

In addition, it’s capable of pretty much any maneuver students are willing to try (provided they’re not into Lomcevaks). Aileron spades provide a kind of power steering to lighten roll rate, and the airplane’s quick elevator response makes it easy to pitch to vertical entries.

The 8KCAB will neither snap with a Pitts nor roll with an Extra, but it makes for a comfortable trainer for students, or a confident air show vehicle. In the hands of an expert like Koontz, it can pull off a double snap on a downline or a half vertical roll up with a hammerhead off the top.

The 8KCAB is well laid-out: All flight and system controls fall readily to hand, and the overhead “eyebrow” windows allow for visibility in practically all directions

The inverted oil and fuel systems also allow limited outside maneuvers. A small header tank holds enough fuel for two minutes of inverted flight, and Koontz uses the time to fly a variety of negative maneuvers, including an outside loop with an outside snap on top. Having done enough outside loops to know just how much they hurt, I have great respect for Koontz’s precision and stamina.

For those masochists who enjoy pushing the limits, the Super will endure +6/-5 G’s, enough to challenge anyone’s gastrointestinal tract.

One of the joys of the Super, however, is that it’s not limited to gut-wrenching aerobatics. It’s an easy machine to climb in and out of, even for bulky pilots, and there’s a small baggage compartment behind the rear seat (though all baggage must be loaded through the single, right-side cabin door).

The big, semi-symmetrical wing is designed more for lift than for speed, and that results in impressive climb for only 180 hp—adequate to levitate above the desert heat in summer or handle the high-density altitudes of Denver, Colo., or Cheyenne, Wyo. Despite the birdcage of struts on each wing, the Super also turns in respectable cruise numbers. Max cruise is listed at 128 knots, but even if you accept 125 knots, that’s a reasonable number considering the airplane’s considerable drag.

Better still, if you’re willing to wear your parachute during cross-country travel, you can throw in an occasional loop or roll just to liven things up.

With 39 gallons aboard and a burn rate of 9.5 to 10 gph, the Super makes a decent cross-country cruiser, capable of three hours of endurance plus reserve, or almost a 400 nm range. If you’re into off-airport operations where bush missions are often out-and-back, that means an operation radius of 200 nm.

As you might expect of an airplane with the lineage of an Aeronca, the Super also sports the ability to handle short, relatively rough strips with ease. An unobstructed, 1,000-foot slice of grass or turf is usually plenty to ground the Super or lift it back off. Not bad for an airplane with a wing bereft of flaps.

It’s almost a cliché to call any tailwheel airplane easy to land, but if any taildragger deserves that accolade, it’s the Super Decathlon. Of all the conventional-gear airplanes I’ve flown, I can’t think of any that are as universally forgiving as the top American Champion model.

Back in the days when the Bellanca Champion line was built in Osceola, Wis., hard by the Minnesota border, I picked up a dozen or more Scouts and Super Decathlons, ferrying them to the West Coast, and on those airplanes without wheel pants, it was always fun to look for interesting, unpaved places to land. I remember plunking into dirt and grass strips all over the Midwest and Southwest on the 1,500 nm trips to California.

Veteran air show pilot Greg Koontz is among the few aerobatic performers flying a Super Decathlon at shows.

The Super is imminently controllable in crosswinds, allowing hard slips to maintain centerline or bleed-off altitude. In short-field mode, it can fly approaches as slow as 60 knots, 55 knots in smooth air if you’re on top of it. Stall speed is a slow 46 knots, so even 55 knots provides the 1.2 Vs buffer.

Normal-category gross is 1,950 pounds against a typical 1,400-pound empty. In other words, add 39 gallons of fuel and you’ll have just over 310 pounds for people and things in nonacro mode. Predictably, the aerobatic weight limit is slightly lower: 1,800 pounds. With full fuel, a typical Super Decathlon will have allowance for a single pilot. In order to fly hard aerobatics, you’ll need to download fuel to half that or less.

As alluded to above, the Super Decathlon has a nonaerobatic brother, the Scout, that’s designed more specifically for bush work and is adaptable to floats, skis or balloon tires. I’ve seen numerous Scouts serving in the outback of Alaska and Canada. The Scout features a gross weight of 2,150 pounds, boosting payload by 200 pounds.

In standard trim, adequate for basic VFR, a Super Decathlon is priced at $146,900. This makes the top American Champion a reasonable trainer, especially in contrast to the two other dedicated trainers: the Liberty XL2 and the Diamond DA20 Eclipse. If you’re a believer that a tailwheel design turns out a better pilot, the Super might make an interesting trainer choice. [Access both “Liberty XL2: A Trainer With A Difference (P&P March 2007) and “Diamond DA20: A Trainer With Attitude” (P&P August 2008) at our online home.]

According to Koontz, the Super Decathlon’s greatest talent is simply that it’s the most forgiving airplane he could possibly imagine for aerobatic instruction. “I spend about 300 hours instructing in the 8KCAB each year,” Koontz comments, “and I can tell you that students universally love the airplane. They quickly discover that it has more talent than they ever imagined and that flying it is easier than they could have hoped.”

Koontz spends another 200 hours flying the Decathlon and other types in air shows and in cross-country travel between shows around the southwestern states.

When I asked Koontz if he had any desire to step up to an Edge or an Extra, he said, “Those are great airplanes, and I have nothing but admiration for the pilots who fly them to the limits in air shows. For my purposes, however, the Super Decathlon offers me more than enough performance and versatility at a price that makes it easy to turn a profit, and that’s a big part of the bottom line.”

SPECS: 2008 Super Decathlon Model 8KCAB

The post American Champion Super Decathlon: Flight With Greg Koontz appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

2008 SUPER DECATHLON MODEL 8KCAB
New price:	$146,900
Engine make/model:	Lycoming AEIO-360-H1B
Horsepower:	180@SL
TBO (hrs.):	1400
Fuel type:	100LL
Propeller diameter/type:	74-in., CS Hartzell
Landing gear type:	Tri./Conv.
Max ramp weight (lbs.):	1950/1800*
Gross weight (lbs.):	1950
Landing weight (lbs.):	1950
Empty weight, std. (lbs.):	1340
Useful load – std. (lbs.):	610
Payload – full std. fuel (lbs.):	376
Useable fuel (gals.):	39
Wingspan (ft.):	32
Overall length:	22 ft.10 in.
Height:	7 ft. 8 in.
Wing area (sq. ft.):	169.1
Wing loading (lbs./sq. ft.):	10.64
Power loading (lbs./hp.):	10 (aerobatic)
Seating capacity:	2
Cabin doors:	1
Cabin width (in.):	30
Cabin height (in.):	45
Baggage capacity (lbs.):	100
G-limits, aerobatic:	+6/-5
PERFORMANCE
Cruise speed (kts.):
75% power:	128
55% power:	111
Fuel consumption (gph):
75% power:	9.5
55% power:	7.6
Vso (kts.):	46
Best rate of climb, SL (fpm):	1280
Service ceiling (ft.):	15,800
Takeoff distance (ft.):	495
Takeoff over 50 ft. obstacle (ft.):	904
Landing distance (ft.):	425
Landing over 50 ft. obstacle (ft.):	1051
Source: American Champion Aircraft

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The post 1997 7GCAA American Champion Adventure appeared first on Plane & Pilot Magazine.

The Anchorage CAP squadron also had a Champion 7EC on its line, and I was granted backseat privileges in that taildragger as well. With only 90 hp out front, the Champ wasn’t as enthusiastic as the Cub, but it was still loads of fun, a reasonable off-airport machine with performance that seemed to defy its minimal horsepower.

Champions have gone through a number of iterations since then, and the company line has expanded and improved. Bellanca purchased Champion in the early 1970s and developed the model 8, a symmetrical-wing airplane that would eventually adopt more horsepower and morph from a simple, easy-handling, short-field performer to a talented, advanced aerobatic trainer.

Thirty years on, Jerry Mehlhaff, current owner of the Champion line [now renamed American Champion Aircraft Corporation (ACAC) and based in Rochester, Wis.], has come out with a third-generation improvement on the basic Champ, dedicated to backwoods operation and certified last June as the company’s latest model, the High Country Explorer. Like all of Mehlhaff’s previous models since he purchased the company in 1992, the new 7GCBC incorporates a metal-wing structure rather than the older wooden spars. The latter was sometimes subject to cracks, and Mehlhaff’s aluminum spars obviously eliminated those problems on new airplanes. (More than coincidentally, the metal-wing structure also imparts a higher gross weight, 1,800 pounds versus 1,650 pounds on the wood-wing Citabrias.)

The new model sports exactly double the horsepower of the original, along with enough other improvements to put it several steps ahead of almost everything else in the ACAC line except the Super Decathlon. Mehlhaff feels that the High Country Explorer fills the gap between ACAC’s standard 160 hp Explorer and the 180 hp Scout.

Doug Dullenkopf of Screaming Eagle Aviation in Santa Paula, Calif., is our resident ACAC dealer. Dullenkopf has been selling Champion products since 1972, right after the type became Bellancas, so he knows more about the Champion line than anyone else I can think of.

It was no big surprise that Dullenkopf had dibs on the first of the High Country Explorers, and he invited me up for a day of fun and games in the new model shortly after its delivery in July. The standard, tandem-seating configuration used on all ACAC airplanes means that there’s plenty of room for practically anyone. Head and leg space is copious, and elbow room is plentiful since you’re not sharing the seat with anyone. While it’s true that the tandem arrangement means less horizontal panel space, the airplane still can be certified IFR and carry full gyros, a transponder and a Garmin VHF and GPS. ACAC even installs a radio master in recognition of possible multiple radios.

The new model 7GCBC combines existing components of ACAC airplanes plus a few new tricks, making this a slightly different machine from anything else in the company line. The wing is essentially the standard semi-Hershey-bar model-7 airfoil rather than the model 8’s symmetrical section. The landing gear is basically the same as the Citabria’s, except it’s now made of aluminum, reconfigured to stand an inch taller. The gear also now encloses the brake line, instead of clamping it to the trailing edge of the leg. Not insignificantly, the use of aluminum reduces the weight by about 13 pounds.

Considering that this is intended primarily as a recreational or working, off-airport machine, the new Explorer utilizes the Scout’s oversized 8.00×6-inch tires, and the result is probably two feet of prop clearance in the three-point attitude, 18 inches in the wheel attitude. Provisions are available to mount floats, skis or huge bush tires. Even in standard trim, there’s no way you’ll ding this prop unless you put the airplane onto its back.

The High Country Explorer also incorporates a premium version of essentially the same carbureted 360-cubic-inch Lycoming engine used on the Scout, along with the aforementioned 76-inch, fixed-pitch, Sensenich propeller. The new Explorer’s powerplant is a Superior Vantage Engine, built to considerably higher standards than the normal mill and the first OEM application of the Vantage engine.

The Superior engine features several parts upgrades, a computer-optimized camshaft, better lubrication and even a cowl flap. In addition to the approval for standard 100 octane, Superior certified the Vantage Lycoming for 91-octane auto fuel, a feature that may become more significant as avgas becomes progressively more expensive and harder to find.

You could legally refuel an American Champion High Country Explorer from five-gallon cans topped off at the local Chevron station. When operating in the boonies, that may be the only source of fuel as well as a relatively inexpensive one at that. (I was in Greenland in mid-July, and 100-octane avgas has already reached $10.50 per gallon in Narsarsuaq. Last October, I ferried a Shrike Commander through Christmas Island, 1,200 miles south of Hawaii in the Pacific, and fuel over there was over $11 per gallon with a minimum of a 55-gallon purchase.)

Unlike the utility-category Scout, the new airplane is still basically a Citabria with aerobatic certification to G limits of +5 and -2, evidenced by the shovel-like spades mounted to the ailerons. Spades are a kind of aerodynamic, poor man’s power steering that help deflect one aileron up and the other down when the pilot initiates any roll deflection. Roll rate isn’t as quick as ACAC’s model 8, but the additional roll power imparted by spades makes the High Country Explorer unusually agile for a bush bird. The engine isn’t injected, and there’s no inverted oil system, so you can’t maintain inverted flight as you can in the Super Decathlon, but that’s not the Explorer’s primary mission.

With a max gross weight of 1,800 pounds and a typical empty weight of 1,250 pounds, the Explorer sports a full-fuel payload of about 300 pounds. In other words, you’ll need to download fuel to carry two, full-sized people. Fortunately, that’s not much of a problem, considering that most Explorer stage lengths are probably less than 200 miles. When passenger load will allow, baggage capacity is 100 pounds behind the rear seat, and good news, the baggage is accessible via its own door. You no longer need to load baggage through the right front door and over the backseat.

Takeoff performance with 180 hp motivating only 1,800 pounds of airplane is predictably exhilarating. ACAC lists the airplane’s takeoff runway requirement as 370 feet and initial climb at 1,350 fpm. That will beat a Top Cub off the ground at gross weight, and it’s better than practically anything else in the industry, except perhaps a Maule or Helio.

Once you’re up and away, you can’t help but notice the airplane’s uncommon visibility. The tall windshield wraps back above the pilot, and the low panel further improves the view forward. Generous side windows also open up visibility in practically every direction, and the tandem configuration means that you can see as easily to the right as the left. During the air-to-air session that produced the photos on these pages, I had the benefit of looking straight up through two overhead windows, providing my photographer with some unusual angles.

The best cruise comes at 80% power (remember, this is a Vantage engine), and if you must, you can climb to 7,500 feet to see max cruise of 117 knots. That’s not bad, considering that the Explorer has wheels, struts, braces, spades and other drag producers hanging in the breeze. Cruise at 7,500 feet defies the nature of the High Country Explorer, however. You may find that you’re happier noodling along at 2,000 feet AGL than a mile or more up.

With 35 gallons of fuel on board, max endurance is about 2.5 hours plus reserve, so the range is just under 300 nm at max cruise. If there’s a need to fly high, the new Explorer can loft to 17,000 feet, but that’s hard to imagine in an airplane that’s most at home in the low-and-slow environment, close to the ground.

In-flight maneuverability falls somewhere between that of the Citabria and Decathlon. If you’re inclined to try some acro, the High Country Explorer is more than willing, and it’s approved for most of the standard inside maneuvers, except snap rolls.

You don’t need to fly vertical or inverted tricks to appreciate the airplane’s easy handling, however. In the traffic pattern, you can fly approaches as slow as 50 knots if there’s a need without any of that verge-of-destruction feeling. Full-flap stall speed is only 40 knots, partially a function of the airplane’s Micro Aerodynamics Vortex generators, and stall characteristics are so benign that you would have to be asleep not to notice them.

With a low no-fly velocity, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it can plunk onto the runway and grind to a stop in less than 400 feet. The improved 7GCBC is one machine that can take off and land in about the same distance.

The base price is $114,900, but that doesn’t include everything. Add IFR provisions, appropriate radios, an intercom and an engine analyzer, and you’ll be approaching $130,000. Remember, the High Country Explorer is an airplane dedicated to the premise that getting there is half the fun, especially when you throw in a loop along the way.

For more information, contact ACAC at (262) 534-6315 or log on to www.amerchampionaircraft.com.

SPECS: 2005 American Champion High Country

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