The Citabria is a light single-engine, two-seat, fixed conventional gear airplane which was first manufactured by Champion Aircraft Corporation in the 1960s. The 7ECA is a specific model of the Citabria that features a 145 horsepower engine, and is often used for flight training due to its stability and ease of handling. The Citabria is popular among sport pilots, and is known for its aerobatic capabilities. The design of the Citabria is based on the Aeronca Champ and the American Champion Citabria is still being produced today.
The Citabria 7ECA is specifically cool due to its tandem seating and stick rather than yoke, giving it a rather fighter jet feeling. My instructor, Lou, pointed out all of the important controls and instruments.
The cockpit is not spacious, however it makes up in comfortable seating with cushioned seats. The view from the pilot’s seat is challenging on the ground due to the engine cowling and tail-dragger design but it improves once in the air. Lou explained all the safety procedures, pre-flight checklists, and how all the gauges, switches and buttons worked.
As the lesson began, we flew around the pattern and I was impressed by the responsiveness of the Citabria’s controls. This is due to the large control surfaces the Citabria has.
After completing a few patterns, Lou told me it was my turn to try landing the plane. I was pretty anxious, specifically, I was worried about prop-striking, which is a common fear among beginner pilots in tail-draggers. Lou guided me through the process, and I carefully followed his instructions. As the wheels touched down on the runway, I was told to hold the stick back when braking. This trick not only provides extra drag with the elevator to help slow down the aircraft, but it also creates a downward force on the wheels enabling better breaking performance.
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