Combining the advantages of both the genetic algorithm (GA) and the chase decoding algorithm, a novel improved decoding algorithm of the block turbo code (BTC) with lower computation complexity and more rapid decoding speed is proposed in order to meet the developing demands of optical communication systems. Compared with the traditional chase decoding algorithm, the computation complexity can be reduced and the decoding speed can be accelerated by applying the novel algorithm. The simulation results show that the net coding gain (NCG) of the novel BTC decoding algorithm is 1.1 dB more than that of the traditional chase decoding algorithm at the bit error rate (BER) of 10_-6. Therefore, the novel decoding algorithm has better decoding correction-error performance and is suitable for the BTC in optical communication systems.