Aircraft model
AMERICAN CHAMPION AIRCRAFT 8KCAB
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Super Decathlon, American Champion's 180 hp version of the aerobatic Decathlon with a constant-speed propeller and metal wing spars. It climbs at nearly 1,300 fpm, flies the full range of basic and intermediate aerobatic manoeuvres upright and inverted, and is the standard aerobatic trainer at a large number of schools. It is also used for upset recovery and spin training. American Champion put the Super Decathlon back into production in 1990, and since 2012 the same 8KCAB designation has also covered the Xtreme Decathlon with a 210 hp Lycoming AEIO-390, so a post-2012 aircraft may be either and the engine decides which.
The metal spar is the reason to prefer an American Champion aircraft over an older Bellanca one: it removes the wooden spar cracking issue that carries inspection requirements on every earlier machine in the family. Against that, useful load is only 490 lb, which is two average adults with reduced fuel and no baggage — an instructor and a student is about the limit. Aerobatic use accumulates airframe fatigue faster than touring flight, so logbooks and any record of over-g events matter. A tailwheel endorsement is required and aerobatic instruction before using the certification is essential rather than optional.
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Put AMERICAN CHAMPION AIRCRAFT 8KCAB side by side with up to two other models.
- AMERICAN CHAMPION AIRCRAFT 8KCAB
What it is
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | taildragger |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Lycoming AEIO-360-H1B |
| Horsepower | 180 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1990 |
| Production end | current |
| Endorsements required | tailwheel |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 120 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 480 nm |
| Service ceiling | 15,800 ft |
| Climb rate | 1,280 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 47 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | — |
| Landing over 50 ft | — |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 490 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 250 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,800 lb |
| Empty weight | 1,310 lb |
| Usable fuel | 40 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 10.1 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $130,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $340,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 1,400 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $36,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $52,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 536 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 447 |
| Median year built | 2004.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 13 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 5 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 29.081 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 26.852 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 124 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 27.743 |
| Airworthiness directives | 12 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 447 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 447 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 447 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 1-2 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 4.8 of 101 |
| Severity | 1.2 of 102 |
| Access | 2 of 103 |
| Support | 10 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 7.8 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 25.8 out of 506 |
- Accident record: class median 25 · 181 models in class.
- Severity: class median 5.
- Access: class median 987.
- Support: class median 72.
- Liquidity: class median 20.59.
- Each of the five categories places the model within its peer class, from 0 (the worst of the class) to 10 (the best): a position among comparable models, not a grade. The overall score is the sum of the categories shown that are scored, out of 10 for each (50 when all five are); it is given only when at least 4 of the five are scored, and it can be set against another model's only when both are in the same peer class and scored on the same categories.