Engines · piston (reciprocating) · data as of October 8, 2026

Continental C90 series

2,149 aircraft on the U.S. register carry a Continental C90 series engine, rated at about 95 horsepower. The Cessna 140 is the model most often fitted with it (440 aircraft). The aircraft carrying it were built between 1940 and 2020.

The FAA records engines by code, usually at the level of a series ("O-320 series") rather than the exact variant; this page gathers every FAA code that reads as Continental C90 series. FAA spelling: C90 SERIES.

Fitted to model families

Model families, as a table

	aircraft
Cessna 140	440
Champion 7 Citabria and Champ	305
Piper PA-11 Cub Special	193
Piper J-3 Cub	170
Piper PA-18 Super Cub	167
Aeronca 7 Champion (Champ)	162
Alon A-2	157
Luscombe 8 Silvaire	103
Forney F-1	57
Mooney M10	38
Champion AERONCA 7	35
Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8	33

Cessna 140 · Champion 7 Citabria and Champ · Piper PA-11 Cub Special · Piper J-3 Cub · Piper PA-18 Super Cub · Aeronca 7 Champion (Champ) · Alon A-2 · Luscombe 8 Silvaire · Forney F-1 · Mooney M10

Where they are owner's state

Texas180California138Alaska128Florida117Minnesota102Wisconsin85Montana81Washington70Ohio70North Dakota60

By state, as a table

	aircraft
Texas	180
California	138
Alaska	128
Florida	117
Minnesota	102
Wisconsin	85
Montana	81
Washington	70
Ohio	70
North Dakota	60

Kind of aircraft

Piston singles2,147 (100%)Piston twins1 (0.0%)Helicopters1 (0.0%)

By kind, as a table

	aircraft	share
Piston singles	2,147	100%
Piston twins	1	0.0%
Helicopters	1	0.0%

When the aircraft were built by decade

By decade built, as a table

	aircraft
1930	6
1940	857
1950	587
1960	245
1970	39
1980	13
1990	7
2000	14
2010	5
2020	1

What the FAA has certified, ordered and been told about the Continental C90 series the component layer

The design is held under 1 type certificate (E-252, held by Continental Aerospace Technologies, INC.). The FAA has issued 6 airworthiness directives (orders that owners must comply with) that name this engine series. Operators and repair shops have filed 18 failure reports with the FAA since 1995, 13 of them in the last ten years.

FAA orders 6 airworthiness directives · newest first

2012-02-242012-03-06 · Fuel servo diaphragm · engine

1998-10-1998-17-11 · Crankshafts · engine

1996-02-1394-05-05 R1 · Cylinder Rocker · engine

1993-12-1493-22-05 · Carburetor Air Intake Housing Assemblies · engine

1981-04-0181-07-06 · AC Fuel Pumps · engine

49-50-01 · Generator Drive Coupling Rubber Disc · engine

Failure reports 18 since · what operators and shops told the FAA

Failure reports by year, as a table

	reports
96	1
01	4
02	4
03	1
06	4
07	2
08	1
11	1

Parts most often reported as the reports name them

Spar8Bolt1Fuel Sys1Gauge1Lead1Needle1Rib1Rotor1Spar Cap1Strut1

Parts most reported, as a table

	reports
Spar	8
Bolt	1
Fuel Sys	1
Gauge	1
Lead	1
Needle	1
Rib	1
Rotor	1
Spar Cap	1
Strut	1

Latest reports

2011-05-17Fuel Sys: unbalanced

2008-02-28Tape: loose

2007-07-26Spar: cracked

2006-09-29Rotor: inoperative

Certificates and bulletins

E-252Type certificate held by Continental Aerospace Technologies, INC. · 15 models listed · revised September 19, 2022

Safety bulletins 6 · advice, not orders

2018-09-10NE-18-27 · POWERPLANT Rocker Shaft Boss Inspection

2016-03-08NE-16-13 · Powerplant - Prohibited use of sealant

2012-10-31NE-13-04 · Continental Motors, Inc. (CMI) Connecting Rod Piston Pin Bushing Inspection

1998-06-10CE-98-21R1 ·

1997-12-31ACE-98-21 ·

Sources: the FAA's type certificate data sheets, airworthiness directives, supplemental type certificates, special conditions and special airworthiness information bulletins (Dynamic Regulatory System), and the FAA's service difficulty reports. A failure report is what an operator or repair station chose to file; the counts show reporting as much as reliability, and larger and commercial fleets report more. How the systems are grouped.

Connections how this engine series links to the rest of the register

Fitted to

Cessna 140 440 with this engine series
Champion 7 Citabria and Champ 305 with this engine series
Piper PA-11 Cub Special 193 with this engine series
Piper J-3 Cub 170 with this engine series
Piper PA-18 Super Cub 167 with this engine series
Aeronca 7 Champion (Champ) 162 with this engine series
Alon A-2 157 with this engine series
Luscombe 8 Silvaire 103 with this engine series

Where they are

Texas 180 of these aircraft
California 138 of these aircraft
Alaska 128 of these aircraft
Florida 117 of these aircraft
Minnesota 102 of these aircraft

Biggest operators

Beech O Sphere LLC 4 of these aircraft
Riggin Flight Service INC 3 of these aircraft
International Air Services INC Trustee 3 of these aircraft
Wallace Aviation INC 2 of these aircraft

Airworthiness

FAA orders naming the Continental C90 series 6 airworthiness directives
Failure reports on the Continental C90 series 18 reports since 1995

Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/engine/continental-c90-series.json.

Aircraft newest certificates first · 2,149

Tail no.	Maker and model	Group	Owner and base	Certificate	Registered	Status
N5559H	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Multiple	2014-02-21	Valid
N9909C	Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	2014-02-20	Valid
N2253V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2014-02-13	Valid
N7417B	Champion 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	2014-02-13	Valid
N98765	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Multiple	2014-02-13	Valid
N814S	Commuter Jr. H1-B	Rotorcraft	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Experimental	2014-02-12	Valid
N5606F	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Cavu Aviation LLC Cedar Park, Texas	Standard	2014-02-06	Valid
N5460H	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Idaho	Standard	2014-02-04	Valid
N115E	Elliott Owen SKYOTE	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Mexico	Experimental	2014-01-30	Valid
N7545B	Champion 7FC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Lrh Equipment LLC Pendleton, Oregon	Standard	2014-01-27	Valid
N4535	Cassutt IIIM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Experimental	2014-01-24	Valid
N3194Z	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	2014-01-16	Valid
N7459B	Champion 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Tennessee	Standard	2014-01-15	Valid
N9467A	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Kourtis Vintage Aviation LLC Owasso, Oklahoma	Standard	2013-12-10	Valid
N6420C	Aeronca 7CCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Delaware	Standard	2013-12-09	Valid
N7515B	Champion 7FC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	2013-12-02	Valid
N8280C	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Multiple	2013-11-27	Valid
N9890B	Aeronca 7FC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Indiana	Standard	2013-11-27	Valid
N9386D	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Alaska	Standard	2013-11-26	Valid
N3009G	Forney F-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Carolina	Standard	2013-11-06	Valid
N35252	Piper J3L-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Mansfield Heliflight INC Milton, Vermont	Standard	2013-11-06	Valid
N42009	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	2013-11-05	Valid
N4957G	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	2013-10-25	Valid
N1408U	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Aircraft Guaranty CORP Trustee Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	Standard	2013-10-24	Valid
N4740M	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Multiple	2013-10-22	Valid
N4983H	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nevada	Standard	2013-09-05	Valid
N5629C	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	2013-09-05	Valid
N140CS	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2013-08-26	Valid
N78633	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Multiple	2013-08-15	Valid
N5065H	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	2013-08-13	Valid
N7548C	Forney F-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Texas	Standard	2013-07-31	Valid
N3572V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2013-07-30	Valid
N1894B	Luscombe 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2013-07-25	Valid
N5694F	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	American Airpower Heritage Flying Museum Dallas, Texas	Standard	2013-07-24	Valid
N6534Q	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Carolina	Standard	2013-07-09	Valid
N9451A	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2013-07-09	Valid
N2425V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	2013-07-05	Valid
N6576Q	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2013-07-03	Valid
N5415H	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Dakota	Multiple	2013-06-21	Valid
N9411A	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Indiana	Standard	2013-06-20	Valid
N3581H	Engineering & Research ERCOUPE 415-CD	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Idaho	Standard	2013-05-24	Valid
N2146V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner New Mexico	Standard	2013-05-20	Valid
N7543C	Forney F-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2013-05-14	Valid
N900RY	Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	2013-05-08	Valid
N72625	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	2013-05-01	Valid
N98877	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2013-05-01	Valid
N1414B	Luscombe 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2013-04-17	Valid
N1599P	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2013-04-10	Valid
N6558Q	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2013-03-29	Valid
N5493F	Mooney A-2A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2013-03-21	Valid
N7488B	Champion 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2013-03-13	Valid
N2261B	Luscombe T-8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Montana	Multiple	2013-03-04	Valid
N6358V	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2013-03-01	Valid
N4355C	Champion 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2013-02-28	Valid
N4716H	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	2013-02-25	Valid
N1402N	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Dakota	Standard	2013-02-20	Valid
N92289	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2013-02-12	Valid
N299SL	Aeronca 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	2013-02-07	Valid
N3742V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2013-02-07	Valid
N7517E	Champion 7FC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Missouri	Standard	2013-02-05	Valid
N7040K	Blasing Donald B CHRISTAVIA MK I	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Illinois	Experimental	2013-01-29	Valid
N2404V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	2013-01-17	Valid
N5674F	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Carolina	Standard	2013-01-17	Valid
N5037H	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Withheld at owner's request	Multiple	2013-01-15	Valid
N9656A	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard	2013-01-08	Valid
N8967R	Champion 7JC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Windsock Holdings LLC Amarillo, Texas	Standard	2013-01-02	Valid
N6555Q	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2012-12-10	Valid
N7579E	Champion 7FC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	2012-12-10	Valid
N3475Z	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Wyoming	Standard	2012-12-05	Valid
N7567B	Champion 7FC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Wasson Tom L Lakeport, California	Standard	2012-12-05	Valid
N3060G	Aircoupe F-1A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Missouri	Standard	2012-11-29	Valid
N83129	Aeronca 7CCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	2012-11-28	Valid
N6786H	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	2012-11-27	Valid
N9626A	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alabama	Standard	2012-11-27	Valid
N70852	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Maine	Standard	2012-11-09	Valid
N2267V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2012-11-06	Valid
N26C	Forney F-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2012-11-02	Valid
N5433H	Piper PA-18	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Multiple	2012-10-22	Valid
N3609V	Cessna 140	Fixed-wing, single engine	Sidney Aviation LLC Sidney, Nebraska	Standard	2012-10-17	Valid
N9915C	Silvaire 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2012-10-11	Valid
N38EM	Antoine-Miller VARIEZE	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Experimental	2012-10-10	Valid
N83248	Aeronca 7AC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Search and Rescue INC Swatara, Minnesota	Multiple	2012-10-10	Valid
N9687A	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2012-09-19	Valid
N1141E	Aeronca 7CCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Restricted	2012-09-10	Valid
N7472B	Champion 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Aero-Mobil INC Wilmington, Delaware	Standard	2012-09-05	Valid
N5353C	Cessna 140A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	2012-08-21	Valid
N8345H	Emigh TROJAN A-2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2012-08-15	Valid
N7402B	Champion 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard	2012-08-09	Valid
N4749H	Piper PA-11	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alabama	Multiple	2012-08-03	Valid
N9068B	Champion 7EC	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Hampshire	Standard	2012-08-02	Valid
N4703E	Aeronca 7CCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Dakota	Multiple	2012-07-02	Valid
N4651	Modernized Midget Mustang GG-1	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Texas	Experimental	2012-06-18	Valid
N6516Q	Alon A2	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	2012-06-08	Valid
N4626E	Aeronca S7CCM	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard	2012-05-31	Valid
N51FS	Piper J3C-65	Fixed-wing, single engine	Babes Fly II LLC Hutchinson, Minnesota	Standard	2012-05-30	Valid
N1583B	Luscombe T-8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	2012-05-24	Valid
N4504M	Piper PA-11S	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Maine	Multiple	2012-05-14	Valid
N9929C	Silvaire LUSCOMBE 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Wildcat Ventures LLC West Lebanon, New Hampshire	Standard	2012-05-09	Valid
N836B	Luscombe 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2012-04-25	Valid
N2037B	Luscombe 8F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Silvaire LLC White Riv Jct, Vermont	Standard	2012-04-17	Valid

Source: FAA Civil Aviation Registry, Releasable Aircraft Database (the engine reference table and each aircraft's engine code), October 8, 2026. Horsepower and thrust are the FAA's figures for the series, not for a particular aircraft.