Aircraft model
CHAMPION 7ECA
Everything here is true of every aircraft of the type, not of any one aircraft.
The Champion-built Citabria 7ECA from the 1960s, before Bellanca took over the line. It is the original aerobatic Champ: a two-seat tandem taildragger with fabric over steel tube, certified for basic aerobatics, and built for tailwheel and aerobatic training at the cheapest possible price. Many flying clubs still use them for exactly that.
The 1960s aircraft typically have the 100 hp Continental O-200 rather than the later Lycoming, which makes them the least powerful of the family — climb is leisurely and aerobatic manoeuvres need to be entered with energy in hand. There is no inverted fuel or oil system, so positive-g only. The two dominant ownership costs are fabric, which will eventually need replacing at more than many of these aircraft are worth, and the wooden wing spars, which have a documented cracking history and associated inspection requirements that must be verified. A tailwheel endorsement is required and aerobatic instruction is strongly advisable before using the certification.
Compare with…
Put CHAMPION 7ECA side by side with up to two other models.
- CHAMPION 7ECA
What it is
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Landing gear | taildragger |
| Engines | 1 |
| Engine | Continental O-200-A |
| Horsepower | 100 hp |
| Fuel | 100LL |
| Certification basis | CAR3 |
| Production start | 1964 |
| Production end | 1970 |
| Endorsements required | tailwheel |
Performance
| Cruise speed | 90 KTAS |
|---|---|
| Range | 420 nm |
| Service ceiling | 12,000 ft |
| Climb rate | 725 ft/min |
| Stall speed (Vso) | 45 KCAS |
| Takeoff over 50 ft | — |
| Landing over 50 ft | — |
Load and fuel
| Seats | 2 |
|---|---|
| Useful load | 650 lb |
| Full-fuel payload | 494 lb |
| Max takeoff weight | 1,650 lb |
| Empty weight | 1,000 lb |
| Usable fuel | 26 gal |
| Fuel burn at cruise | 5.6 gal/h |
Cost of ownership
| Price, low | $40,000 |
|---|---|
| Price, high | $62,000 |
| Prices as of | 2026 |
| Engine TBO | 1,800 h |
| Overhaul cost, low | $24,000 |
| Overhaul cost, high | $34,000 |
The fleet and its record
| Registered, all time | 713 |
|---|---|
| Active fleet | 419 |
| Median year built | 1967.0 |
| NTSB events, last 10 years | 16 |
| Fatal events, last 10 years | 2 |
| Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years | 38.191 |
| Personal-flying events per 1,000 active | 28.642 |
| Ownership transfers, last 24 months | 84 |
| Transfers per 100 active | 20.053 |
| Airworthiness directives | 4 |
| Directives, last 5 years | 0 |
| Rate confidence | ok |
- Events per 1,000 active, last 10 years: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 419 active.
- Personal-flying events per 1,000 active: per 1,000 active aircraft · base 419 active.
- Transfers per 100 active: per 100 active aircraft · base 419 active.
Peer scores6
| Peer class | Fixed wing single-engine, piston, 1 engine, 1-2 seats |
|---|---|
| Accident record | 4.7 of 101 |
| Severity | 4.7 of 102 |
| Access | 5.3 of 103 |
| Support | 9.4 of 104 |
| Liquidity | 6.5 of 105 |
| Overall (sum of the categories shown) | 30.6 out of 506 |
These record scores treat CHAMPION 7ECA as one design with the same aircraft registered under other names: it includes 347 aircraft registered under BELLANCA. Prices are not combined.
- Accident record: class median 29.1 · 174 models in class.
- Severity: class median 9.09.
- Access: class median 974.
- Support: class median 81.
- Liquidity: class median 20.47.
- 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.