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

Continental O-300 series

6,623 aircraft on the U.S. register carry a Continental O-300 series engine, rated at about 145 horsepower. The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is the model most often fitted with it (6,073 aircraft). The aircraft carrying it were built between 1949 and 2021.

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 O-300 series. FAA spelling: 0-300 SER.

Fitted to model families

Model families, as a table

	aircraft
Cessna 172 Skyhawk	6,073
Cessna 170	372
Maule M-4	47
Cessna 175 Skylark	41
Globe GC-1 Swift	28
Aeronca 15	8
Temco GC-1	8
Cessna 150	7
Maule BEE DEE M-4	3
Piper PA-18 Super Cub	2
Piper PA-24 Comanche	2
American Champion Aircraft 7 Citabria and Champ	1

Cessna 172 Skyhawk · Cessna 170 · Maule M-4 · Cessna 175 Skylark · Globe GC-1 Swift · Aeronca 15 · Temco GC-1 · Cessna 150 · Maule BEE DEE M-4 · Piper PA-18 Super Cub

Where they are owner's state

Texas622California469Florida340Washington306Alaska267Michigan223Ohio219Georgia202Oregon194North Carolina191

By state, as a table

	aircraft
Texas	622
California	469
Florida	340
Washington	306
Alaska	267
Michigan	223
Ohio	219
Georgia	202
Oregon	194
North Carolina	191

Kind of aircraft

Piston singles6,621 (100%)Piston twins1 (0.0%)Helicopters1 (0.0%)

By kind, as a table

	aircraft	share
Piston singles	6,621	100%
Piston twins	1	0.0%
Helicopters	1	0.0%

When the aircraft were built by decade

By decade built, as a table

	aircraft
1940	62
1950	1,889
1960	3,524
1970	14
1980	3
1990	2
2000	3
2020	1

What the FAA has certified, ordered and been told about the Continental O-300 series the component layer

The design is held under 1 type certificate (E-253, held by Continental Aerospace Technologies, INC.). The FAA has issued 7 airworthiness directives (orders that owners must comply with) that name this engine series. Operators and repair shops have filed 38 failure reports with the FAA since 1995, 5 of them in the last ten years.

FAA orders 7 airworthiness directives · newest first

2023-10-262023-17-04 · Reciprocating Engine Oil System · engine

2022-03-292022-04-04 · Reciprocating Engine Oil System · engine

2012-01-242011-26-07 · Engine · engine

2002-07-122002-13-04 · Magneto impulse coupling stop pin · engine

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

1993-08-1293-10-02 · Missing Cylinder Valve Retainer Key · engine

All orders naming the Continental O-300 series

Failure reports 38 since · what operators and shops told the FAA

Failure reports by year, as a table

	reports
96	1
01	3
02	4
03	10
04	3
05	2
06	2
07	5
08	2
09	1
11	1
12	1
13	1
19	2

Parts most often reported as the reports name them

Baffle4Cylinder3Bulkhead2Connecting Rod2Stringer2Wheel2Adapter1Axle1Battery1Bearing Cage1

Parts most reported, as a table

	reports
Baffle	4
Cylinder	3
Bulkhead	2
Connecting Rod	2
Stringer	2
Wheel	2
Adapter	1
Axle	1
Battery	1
Bearing Cage	1

Latest reports

2019-11-19Line: broken

2019-05-10Cylinder: cracked

2013-02-22Counterweight: loose

2012-07-10Cylinder: cracked

2011-08-08Cylinder: broken

Certificates and bulletins

E-253Type certificate held by Continental Aerospace Technologies, INC. · 8 models listed · revised September 19, 2022

Safety bulletins 3 · 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

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 172 Skyhawk 6,073 with this engine series
Cessna 170 372 with this engine series
Maule M-4 47 with this engine series
Cessna 175 Skylark 41 with this engine series
Globe GC-1 Swift 28 with this engine series
Aeronca 15 8 with this engine series
Temco GC-1 8 with this engine series
Cessna 150 7 with this engine series

Where they are

Texas 622 of these aircraft
California 469 of these aircraft
Florida 340 of these aircraft
Washington 306 of these aircraft
Alaska 267 of these aircraft

Biggest operators

United States Air Force Owner 10 of these aircraft
Bas Part Sales LLC 9 of these aircraft
Sutton Aircraft Salvage LLC 8 of these aircraft
Dmac Aircraft LLC 8 of these aircraft
United States Air Force 7 of these aircraft

Airworthiness

FAA orders naming the Continental O-300 series 7 airworthiness directives
Failure reports on the Continental O-300 series 38 reports since 1995

Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/engine/continental-o-300-series.json.

Aircraft newest certificates first · 6,623

Tail no.	Maker and model	Group	Owner and base	Certificate	Registered	Status
N3108F	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Suntech LLC St George, Utah	Standard	2020-05-27	Valid
N7845T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2020-05-27	Valid
N228NY	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	2020-05-26	Valid
N7707T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	American Petro INC Ball Ground, Georgia	Standard	2020-05-26	Valid
N5746R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-05-22	Valid
N3538D	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	2020-05-21	Valid
N3754F	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-05-21	Valid
N1682F	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Bravo Zak Air LLC Lake Wales, Florida	Standard	2020-05-19	Valid
N2519U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2020-05-13	Valid
N7314A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Idaho	Standard	2020-05-13	Valid
N5776R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Texas	Standard	2020-05-12	Valid
N7859U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2020-05-11	Valid
N6407B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Florida	Standard	2020-05-08	Valid
N6681A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Hampshire	Standard	2020-05-07	Valid
N172TW	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2020-05-06	Valid
N2662U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2020-05-06	Valid
N6399E	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Mountain House LLC Clear Lake, Iowa	Standard	2020-05-05	Valid
N6479E	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	2020-05-05	Valid
N8288X	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Lantana Beach Flying Club West Palm Beach, Florida	Standard	2020-05-04	Valid
N100AW	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-05-01	Valid
N12029	Maule M-4	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2020-05-01	Valid
N6070R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2020-05-01	Valid
N2950D	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Iowa	Standard	2020-04-29	Valid
N4985R	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	United States Air Force Owner Clovis, New Mexico	Standard	2020-04-29	Valid
N8844Z	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Terry L Fowler LLC Greenbrier, Arkansas	Standard	2020-04-29	Valid
N8604B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	2020-04-27	Valid
N7169T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	2020-04-23	Valid
N786DP	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2020-04-23	Valid
N8202X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2020-04-23	Valid
N4183F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Durocher David T Logan, Utah	Standard	2020-04-22	Valid
N5308T	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Avventura LLC San Marcos, California	Standard	2020-04-21	Valid
N8889B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	2020-04-16	Valid
N1142F	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2020-04-15	Valid
N8370U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Washington	Standard	2020-04-15	Valid
N7765T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	2020-04-14	Valid
N8327X	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Two Seven Xray LLC Paradise Valley, Arizona	Standard	2020-04-14	Valid
N7000A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New Mexico	Standard	2020-04-10	Valid
N5872R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Illinois	Standard	2020-04-06	Valid
N7321T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-04-03	Valid
N8030X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-04-02	Valid
N172XX	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Georgia	Standard	2020-04-01	Valid
N6128E	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2020-04-01	Valid
N8867U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Multiple	2020-04-01	Valid
N2988U	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-03-31	Valid
N117GS	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oregon	Standard	2020-03-30	Valid
N40694	Maule M-4C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Yeager and CO INC Boulder, Colorado	Standard	2020-03-30	Valid
N7571X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Brown Bomber Aviation LLC Little Rock, Arkansas	Standard	2020-03-30	Valid
N3669S	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2020-03-27	Valid
N8297B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nevada	Standard	2020-03-26	Valid
N7268T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	2020-03-25	Valid
N5804R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	2020-03-24	Valid
N8898B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	2020-03-24	Valid
N7770U	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	2020-03-18	Valid
N5378R	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Alaska	Standard	2020-03-17	Valid
N7791U	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kentucky	Standard	2020-03-17	Valid
N8523U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Maryland	Standard	2020-03-17	Valid
N3589C	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	2020-03-16	Valid
N8528B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Reiber Robert F Riverside, California	Standard	2020-03-16	Valid
N6970X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	4 Generation Aviation LLC Memphis, Missouri	Standard	2020-03-11	Valid
N8256B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kentucky	Standard	2020-03-11	Valid
N252JM	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2020-03-09	Valid
N2998D	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Elite Aircraft Sales LLC Searcy, Arkansas	Standard	2020-03-09	Valid
N6695A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Wisconsin	Standard	2020-03-05	Valid
N66BD	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Ohio	Standard	2020-03-05	Valid
N8410U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wyoming	Standard	2020-03-05	Valid
N2672F	Cessna 182J	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	2020-03-04	Valid
N4135L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	2020-03-04	Valid
N7048T	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Arkansas	Standard	2020-03-04	Valid
N7434T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Kansas	Standard	2020-03-04	Valid
N8367B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Idaho	Multiple	2020-03-04	Valid
N8818B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Maine	Standard	2020-03-04	Valid
N634WG	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Wings of Grace Ministries INC Melbourne, Florida	Standard	2020-03-02	Valid
N7356A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	2020-03-02	Valid
N1610F	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kansas	Standard	2020-02-27	Valid
N8299B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Hawaii	Standard	2020-02-27	Valid
N6889X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nevada	Standard	2020-02-26	Valid
N856DR	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Florida	Standard	2020-02-25	Valid
N1816Y	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Oklahoma	Standard	2020-02-24	Valid
N8605U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-02-24	Valid
N3798S	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	T4 Enterprises LLC Kalispell, Montana	Standard	2020-02-20	Valid
N6709A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	2020-02-19	Valid
N1426F	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Tennessee	Standard	2020-02-18	Valid
N6793A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Ohio	Standard	2020-02-13	Valid
N2986U	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner South Dakota	Standard	2020-02-12	Valid
N1429Y	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Semmig Jeffrey C Oceanside, California	Standard	2020-02-11	Valid
N5922A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	2020-02-11	Valid
N8759U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	2020-02-11	Valid
N8594B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	2020-02-10	Valid
N7663T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Tc Flight LLC Lincoln, Nebraska	Standard	2020-02-07	Valid
N1642F	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Romeo Kilo Golf LLC Asheville, North Carolina	Standard	2020-02-04	Valid
N4343L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Diamond C Aviation LLC Gentry, Arkansas	Standard	2020-02-03	Valid
N6955X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Dirigo Aerospace Solutions LLC Sumner, Maine	Standard	2020-02-03	Valid
N6994A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Texas	Standard	2020-02-03	Valid
N7603T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Wisconsin	Standard	2020-02-03	Valid
N8383U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2020-02-03	Valid
N1308Y	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Utah	Standard	2020-01-31	Valid
N7203A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	2020-01-30	Valid
N153WS	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	2020-01-29	Valid
N3702L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nebraska	Standard	2020-01-29	Valid
N7798T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Cessna Aces LLC Metairie, Louisiana	Standard	2020-01-29	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.