Twins Vs Singles

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Single vs Twin Which is Safer?
(From FAA Aviation News/March - April 1991)
Spring has sprung (in most of the country, that is), and it is the time when a pilot's fancy turns to doing more flying in the balmy air. Spring is the time when new plants sprout, new animals are born; so perhaps you have considered having your certificate 11 grow" anew rating. Perhaps that new rating you are considering is a multiengine class rating. You have heard other pilots remarking that it only takes a few hours to earn, and there is no requirement for a written test. Why not? A few hours in the air in a 11 real" airplane, and you walk away with an authorization to fly airplanes with more than one engine. Besides, everyone knows two engines are betterthan one-right? � Editor
According to an old saying, "There is safety in numbers." If the saying is true ' if one engine is safe, are two engines twice as safe? The following short, simple, single-versus-twin-engine pilot test may help you decide. The test is designed to test your knowledge of safe operating procedures for one and two engine light general aviation aircraft. Depending on yournumber of correct answers, you may be: a passenger, a student pilot, a pilot, or an aircraft survivor. Match the following questions with their correct answers. The correct order is given at the end of the article.
Questions:
1. When are two engines better than one?
2. Why have two engines?
3. When is one engine better than two?
Answers:
1. When you crash.
2. So you can pick thespot for an emergency landing.
3. When one quits.
4. I don't know/I don't care.
Score based on the number of correct matches:
0 = passenger; 1 = student pilot; 2 = pilot; 3 = survivor.
The questions are variations of the single engine versus the light-twin-engine aircraft controversy pilots have argued about since Orville Wright made his first flight in a single-engine, twin-propaircraft. Each question contains an important safety message for pilots of both single and light-twin-engine airplanes.
Although two engines provide a twin-engine aircraft a degree of safety through redundancy, that safety factor can be offset by the pilot's lack of knowledge about light twin operating characteristics. Misconceptions about "two are better than one" have caused many pilots grief. Thereason is simple. Most light twins (for the purpose of this article, those under 6,000 pounds gross weight and/or with a stall speed of 61 knots or less) lose about 80 percent or more of their power when an engine fails, rather than the 50 percent one would expect. That 80 percent or more power loss is why, under certain conditions, a light twin may only have enough power after an engine failure forthe pilot to pick a spot for an emergency landing. The aircraft may not have enough power to hold altitude or fly safely on only one engine.
The problem is some twin pilots may decide to risk continued flight when the safest decision may be a controlled emergency landing in a place of their choosing rather than risk an out of control crash. Single-engine pilots do not have the same type ofproblem. Their decision process is simple. They lose an engine; they land!
Since an engine failure can ruin any pilot's day, the following is a review of some practical takeoff safety tips for those pilots who may not have flown much during the winter. Maybe some of the ideas will help some pilot prevent an engine-out emergency or at least minimize the risks of one. The survival key for both single andlight-twin-engine pilots is their flight planning before the engine starts, not after it stops.
As in any article discussing flying ideas and safety tips, the pilot operating manual is the authoritative guide for the safe operation of a specific model of aircraft.
According to the latest available National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) general aviation safety report, Annual Review of...