This 1965 American Champion 7ECA Citabria Is an Unhurried, Unflappable ‘AircraftForSale’ Top Pick

With a cruising speed around 70 ktas on a good day, this rag-and-tube classic lets you savor the journey.

Citabrias are ideal for easygoing weekend trips and getting into basic aerobatics. [Courtesy: Richard Kemp]

Each day, the team at Aircraft For Sale picks an airplane that catches our attention because it is unique, represents a good deal, or has other interesting qualities. You can read Aircraft For Sale: Today’s Top Pick at FLYINGMag.com daily.

This particular version of the Citabria, the 100 hp 7ECA, is my favorite because it is such a gentle, forgiving machine, especially among taildraggers. My flying club has one in which I occasionally take recurrent training to keep my tailwheel endorsement in shape. Deep down, though, I think the best way to stay current in a tailwheel airplane is to fly it all the time.

When I fly the Citabria, I always wind up thinking about how things would go if I owned it. I imagine that my wife would be perfectly happy traveling to Deer Isle, Maine, or Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, in the rear seat, at less than half the cruising speed of our Commander 114B. We would have more time to savor the experience.

This aerobatic 1965 Citabria has 1,173 hours on the airframe and 837 hours on its 100 hp Continental O-200 engine since overhaul. Its McCauley ACM6948 propeller was dynamically balanced in 2021. The aircraft was re-covered with Poly Fiber and repainted in 2004, with a new interior installed the same year. It is equipped with 8.50 tires, Scott 3200 tailwheel, and quick-release aerobatic door.

The full gyro panel includes an accelerometer, Garmin GTR 225 with intercom, KT 76A Mode C transponder, and uAvionix Skybeacon ADS-B. The airplane also comes with a JPI 730 engine monitor that has not been installed.

Pilots craving the warm embrace between oleo strut landing gear and a grass strip, and the joy of flying low and slow, following terrain features instead of the magenta line, should consider this 1965 American Champion Citabria, which is available for $45,000 on AircraftForSale.

You can arrange financing of the aircraft through FLYING Finance. For more information, email info@flyingfinance.com.

Jonathan Welsh is a private pilot who worked as a reporter, editor and columnist with the Wall Street Journal for 21 years, mostly covering the auto industry. His passion for aviation began in childhood with balsa-wood gliders his aunt would buy for him at the corner store. Follow Jonathan on Twitter @JonathanWelsh4

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