American Champion Unveils Xtreme Decathlon

Pia Bergqvist

Tuesday, July 24, 2012 at 10:28 PM ET

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Xtreme Decathlon

Key Takeaways:

American Champion introduced the Xtreme Decathlon, a new, more powerful version of the Super Decathlon designed for aerobatic training.
It features a 210 hp Lycoming engine (a 30 hp boost), making it 15 mph faster and improving climb performance by nearly 400 fpm.
Aerodynamic enhancements include an increased elevator area, clipped wingtips, and boosted ailerons, resulting in a 33% better roll rate of 120 degrees per second.
Certification is expected this fall, with six airplanes on order for delivery this year and future production planned at 20-40 units annually.

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On the opening day of AirVenture, American Champion introduced a new, more powerful version of the Super Decathlon called the Xtreme Decathlon. The airplane is intended for aerobatic training and the working prototype that is on display at the show will eventually go to a Melbourne, Australia-based flight school called Aerobatics Australia.

The new airplane includes several modifications, the most significant one being a 30-horsepower boost over the Super Decathlon. In addition to improving the performance, the 210 hp Lycoming AEIO-390-A1B6 added 39 pounds of weight to the airplane, but 62 pounds worth of weight reducing modifications more than made up for the difference.