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
N7467X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	1983-05-18	Valid
N2676L	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	1983-05-11	Valid
N3232A	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1983-05-06	Valid
N6619E	Cessna 175	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Utah	Standard	1983-04-27	Valid
N3964F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Iowa	Standard	1983-03-11	Valid
N3719L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1983-03-07	Valid
N3703S	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	1983-01-31	Valid
N3846L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1983-01-25	Valid
N2393D	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	1983-01-15	Valid
N4049F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1982-12-14	Valid
N7996B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	G & R Flying LTD Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin	Standard	1982-12-11	Valid
N9843T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	1982-12-03	Valid
N9787T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	1982-11-16	Valid
N3498C	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	1982-09-27	Valid
N8199B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1982-09-27	Valid
N7442X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	1982-08-20	Valid
N8602B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Idaho	Standard	1982-04-27	Valid
N2717U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	1982-04-07	Valid
N4079F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1982-03-22	Valid
N7670X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1982-03-16	Valid
N1872Y	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Kamp Implement CO Belgrade, Montana	Standard	1982-03-08	Valid
N4248F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Delaware	Standard	1981-09-15	Valid
N8717B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1981-08-10	Valid
N5835A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	1981-07-21	Valid
N6444	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	1981-06-10	Valid
N6775A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Oregon	Standard	1981-06-10	Valid
N611C	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	1981-05-14	Valid
N3788S	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1981-02-17	Valid
N3863R	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1981-01-20	Valid
N7113A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Nebraska	Standard	1981-01-19	Valid
N4164L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Derwin Diversified INC Santa Paula, California	Standard	1980-11-20	Valid
N6684A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1980-08-13	Valid
N6902A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	1980-06-03	Valid
N1411F	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1980-04-18	Valid
N2074Y	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Montana	Standard	1980-01-22	Valid
N4411B	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Kansas	Standard	1979-11-01	Valid
N2684U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Michigan	Standard	1979-07-06	Valid
N2443L	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Odlozil Henry W Ennis, Texas	Standard	1979-06-28	Valid
N12027	Maule M-4	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Minnesota	Standard	1979-04-23	Valid
N5884A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1979-04-16	Valid
N3960F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Oregon	Multiple	1978-12-11	Valid
N7903U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Standard	1978-11-22	Valid
N1387F	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1978-09-11	Valid
N4504C	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1978-09-05	Valid
N2789L	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Carolina	Standard	1978-08-15	Valid
N7609T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Washington	Standard	1978-06-22	Valid
N7459X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Alaska	Standard	1978-05-02	Valid
N2562L	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Indiana	Standard	1978-03-22	Valid
N7897U	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Illinois	Standard	1977-11-14	Valid
N2831U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Georgia	Standard	1977-09-28	Valid
N1497F	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Iowa	Standard	1977-08-08	Valid
N1395Y	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1977-06-06	Valid
N7259T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Idaho	Standard	1977-05-12	Valid
N6916A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1977-04-22	Valid
N5447R	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1977-04-20	Valid
N9703T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Illinois	Standard	1976-10-14	Valid
N5637A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	1976-08-30	Valid
N7502X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Tennessee	Standard	1976-07-09	Valid
N5220F	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	United States Air Force Eglin Afb, Florida	Standard	1976-06-14	Valid
N2032Y	Cessna 172C	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1976-04-02	Valid
N7538T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	1975-08-29	Valid
N7010E	Cessna 175A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Wisconsin	Standard	1975-07-28	Valid
N7448X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner North Dakota	Standard	1975-07-24	Valid
N3885K	Temco GC-1B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arizona	Standard	1975-06-09	Valid
N5618R	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1975-05-08	Valid
N8010L	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	Legion Flying Club INC Springfield, Massachusetts	Standard	1974-04-03	Valid
N2735U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Oregon	Standard	1974-04-02	Valid
N7578X	Cessna 172B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Texas	Standard	1974-02-19	Valid
N7030A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	1973-10-04	Valid
N3677L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	1973-08-25	Valid
N7729U	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Pennsylvania	Standard	1973-08-21	Valid
N3913F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Tailwinds INC Lancaster, Pennsylvania	Standard	1973-06-30	Valid
N5852R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1973-06-07	Valid
N124Q	Cessna 170	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1973-03-22	Valid
N5390R	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	1972-09-29	Valid
N7901B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Arkansas	Standard	1972-09-18	Valid
N7222A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1972-09-14	Valid
N7021T	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner Washington	Standard	1972-09-06	Valid
N5798R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Ohio	Standard	1972-03-29	Valid
N3565S	Cessna 172E	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Kentucky	Standard	1972-03-13	Valid
N4262F	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Washington	Standard	1972-02-24	Valid
N5229F	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	United States Air Force Owner Clovis, New Mexico	Standard	1971-12-02	Valid
N7506T	Cessna 172A	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Vermont	Standard	1970-10-15	Valid
N7036A	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Co-owned owner California	Standard	1970-07-21	Valid
N5768R	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Allenray CORP Otsego, Michigan	Standard	1970-02-17	Valid
N9157B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner New York	Standard	1969-04-18	Valid
N8312B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner California	Standard	1969-03-17	Revoked
N4344L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Georgia	Standard	1969-03-12	Valid
N7091T	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1969-03-04	Valid
N5439R	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Indian Hills Community College Ottumwa, Iowa	Standard	1968-08-09	Valid
N5329R	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	Dearborn Flying Club INC Grosse Pt Shr, Michigan	Standard	1968-02-27	Valid
N4979R	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	United States Air Force Offutt Afb, Nebraska	Standard	1967-07-14	Valid
N4981R	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	United States Air Force (Owner) Offutt Afb, Nebraska	Standard	1967-07-14	Valid
N4987R	Cessna 172H	Fixed-wing, single engine	United States Air Force Owner Offutt Afb, Nebraska	Standard	1967-07-14	Valid
N3791L	Cessna 172G	Fixed-wing, single engine	Powell County Flying Club INC Owingsville, Kentucky	Standard	1967-03-17	Valid
N6495B	Cessna 172	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Virginia	Standard	1966-10-27	Valid
N3517C	Cessna 170B	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Colorado	Multiple	1966-07-28	Valid
N2905U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Individual owner Florida	Standard	1965-09-21	Valid
N5235F	Cessna 172F	Fixed-wing, single engine	United States Air Force March Afb, California	Standard	1965-03-24	Valid
N2805U	Cessna 172D	Fixed-wing, single engine	Continental Skylarks INC Deer Park, New York	Standard	1965-01-21	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.