I don't believe this information would be of any use for several reasons:

1. Most engine failures are caused by the pilot running out of gas. Most of the remaining engine failures are caused by poor maintenance.

2. The number of engine failures for a specific engine type is going to be more or less proportional to the number of those engines in use and the number of hours they fly. There are a lot more Lycomings in service than there are Subaru or Rotax, I suspect; and the Lycomings are going to be installed in commercially produced aircraft that are going to be flown a lot more often than somebody's homebuilt.

3. Different engines are used for different purposes. An engine that is found primarily in high performance aerobatic aircraft, for example, might have a higher incidence of engine failure than the ones in a twin turboprop commuter, simply because it's driven harder. (Or it might not.) Does that mean airshow performers should stick to lower horsepower engines? Not likely <img src="/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

4. There are only a handful of aircraft engine manufacturers out there, and their engines have a very long, very successful track record. Because of the TSO requirements in the US, these manufacturers tend not to make changes to the engine design, simply because it's prohibitively expensive to do so.

5. An engine failure may be caused by something that has nothing to do with the engine - lack of fuel, poor maintenance, dirty/contaminated fuel, ice crystals, carburetor icing, clogged fuel line, oil leak, shock cooling of the engine, applying the throttle too abruptly during a go-around, letting the engine idle too long during a simulated forced approach, etc. etc. There was one case in Flying magazine where a student pilot accidently snagged the ignition key, pulled it out of the ignition, and lost it under her seat. (The instructor was able to retrieve it and restart the engine.)

6. A complete engine failure in flight is usually survivable as long as the pilot maintains control of the aircraft.

7. The vast majority of fatal accidents have nothing to do with engine failure. These are routinely written up and published by the NTSB, Transport Canada, and other similar organisations. In Canada, they're sent out to active pilots on a monthly basis. So pilots have ready access to insight in what causes accidents, yet they still make the same stupid, bonehead mistakes month after month, year after year.

MHOO,OC <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />