The Citabria and the Decathlon are very nearly the same airplane. The Decathlon wing has a metal spar and the engine is a far more exciting 180 horsepower Lycoming. I took one flight in the 8KCAB and I did not make use of its major advantage over the Citabria. The Decathlon can do ‘outside’ maneuvers…these are things that put negative Gs on the plane – outside loops and inverted flight being the most common. These fabric covered planes are rather common high wing, tandem aircraft and are often painted with a sunburst pattern on the wings and tail. Like the 7 series airplanes, this is not a long distance flier, or a cruising machine. It is designed for moderate aerobatics and is often a first competitive plane for novice aerobatics pilots.
 |
| The very decathlon I flew at the airport I flew it from |
I got in it because the Citabria was rented that day, I needed more tailwheel time and I thought I might go on to get an aerobatics endorsement. I still might, but I ran out of steam shortly after this flight. The parachute that is required when doing aerobatics does not cramp the pilot’s sitting arrangement or make it seem more difficult to get out the flimsy fabric door. In fact, sitting on the chute makes for a slightly higher perch that makes taxing even less of an issue in this plane. We departed John Wayne for some aerobatics practice on a perfectly clear, blue-sky day. The aerobatics box is about a five mile flight from the pattern and the controls on the Decathlon proved light and well balanced. There is some adverse yaw, so I spent a little time in straight and level flight working on Dutch Rolls. The rudder is heavier than in a Cessna or Piper, but it also does a good deal more. On this particular Decathlon there were wire sculptures out at the end of the wingtip that allow pilot to judge the angle of the wing relative to the horizon when the wing is in usual attitudes.
I did rolls, snap rolls, an inside loop, a hammerhead and I attempted an Immelman turn. From this I learned that this is one capable airplane. The larger engine relative to the Citabria really makes a difference. The other thing we learned is that I might be too easily disoriented to be a good aerobatics pilot. My principal gift as an aviator (or SCUBA diver, or parent) is that I do not get overly excited or panicky when things are potentially not going well. When I got confused in the Immelman I was in no way wondering whether I knew where I was. I absolutely knew that I was completely confused about my posture vis-à-vis the earth, but I was not overly concerned about that. Either I do not have the intelligence to understand the implications of situations like this or I am not imaginative enough about the outcomes. As I must have known, back in the reptile part of my brain, once the world stopped spinning it was clear I was in a 60 degree bank and letting the nose fall off into a power dive. I remedied that, but I suspect the true ugliness of the attempted maneuver made my instructor wonder.
Chris asked whether I had recently done much spinning. I allowed as the last time I had done any was when Dan, one of my several flight instructors, decided it would be good for my digestion and complexion to spin his Cessna 150. We did spin entries for about 40 minutes and I confess that I had only a vague idea of where I was at any time. Well, Chris had me spin that Decathlon, and I am here to tell you that while I read in the magazines about the gentle stall characteristics of this plane and that I never read about how sprightly an airframe enters an ‘over the top’ spin. Someone should write about that. This plane really, really likes to spin. The first spin I popped into in the usual fashion with some up elevator and crossed controls. I pulled out of the spin without help, but was completely stumped by the question that came over my headset. ‘How many times did we go around’? Are you kidding? I am psyched when I keep it straight and level, while spinning I have no clue what is going on. ‘Once’ I said only to be told that we did two and a half rotations. Huh. OK, I’ll count the next time.
I pulled us in to another one, this time stalling the higher wing and getting that awesome flippy sensation when the flying wing and the stalled wing swap attitudes all of a sudden. I counted out loud and got to four before rescuing us from certain dizziness. Chris allowed as I was counting something other than rotations since I seemed to increment the list a little more often than I should. Three and a quarter rotations; I did not even come out on the heading I went in on. A third time I took us around and once again my count was off. ‘What part of the horizon are you looking at when you fix a landmark’ asked Chris? That was when I realized that I generally keep my eyes closed for the first part of the spin. It is more fun that way. Less pro apparently, but more fun. A few more spins with my eyes open and I was able to report accurately on the number of arounds. The spins seemed less exciting though, perhaps I need to add a small cabin fire to keep things interesting.
In any case, as we headed back to the airport I decided that even a neophyte like me could feel that the Decathlon is a more capable aerobat than the Citabria. Hopefully I will get some more comparison flying in. No way I could afford to rent the Extra or Pitts, but someday I’ll get a few more aerobatic airframes under my belt. A perfect wheel landing finished off the afternoon.
As two passenger airplanes, with a somewhat antisocial seating arrangement, neither the Citabria nor the Decathlon is something you would buy for transport. If you need to get from A to B the choices range from the pedestrian and inexpensive Cessna 150, through the snappy handling Grumman Yankee, to the modern, sleek, fast and easy on fuel Diamond DV20. No, these airplanes are for folks who want to fly. Pilots who are perfectly happy if the majority of log book entries read KFHR Local in the destination block. For someone who wants an avenue for experiencing flight at its purest, these are wonderful planes. Their location in the flight envelope can usually be determined without reference to instruments, simply listen to the sound of the wind whistling across the fabric and around the struts. The price for a Citabria is somewhere south of $50K and for the Super D you can expect to pay over $150K. Neither one is for the faint of wallet, but both planes bring a purity of flight mixed with aerobatic capability to the table. This has to be worth the price of admission for many folks.
The only caveat I would emphasize for the potential owner is that as fabric covered airplanes these really should be in a hanger. Though the John Wayne aerobatics operation kept theirs in the blazing seaside sun, and bragged about 10-15 year life spans for the covering, I would be very reluctant to put a $15K recovering job out in the salt air. That corrosive air is another reason the hanger is worth while. The fabric and strut combination makes for some really good hiding places for corrosion. This is something to think about on the pre-buy as well as when storing the plane.
