This topic has been discussed over and over again. That being said, I would much rather put my family on a SE Turbine than a ME Piston any day.
Powerplant Reliability Comparative Data - Five Year Average. 1992-1996 (Data is based on information available from NTSB and FAA sources).
Accidents per 100,000 hours by major aircraft type, 5 year average 1992-1996
Single engine reciprocating powered aircraft 9.26
Multi-engine reciprocating powered aircraft 5.68
Multi-engine turboprop powered aircraft 4.34
Single engine turboprop aircraft 1.46
Percent of general aviation fixed wing aircraft accidents attributed to power loss - all causes - 5 year average, 1992-1996
Single engine reciprocating powered aircraft 33.5%
Multi-engine reciprocating powered aircraft 27.6%
Multi-engine turboprop powered aircraft 8.0%
Single engine turboprop aircraft 0%
Percent of general aviation fixed wing aircraft accidents attributed to power loss due to mechanical, maintenance, design, manufacturer causes
Single engine reciprocating powered aircraft 14.4%
Multi-engine reciprocating powered aircraft 8.9%
Multi-engine turboprop powered aircraft 4.0%
Single engine turboprop aircraft 0%
Accidents per 100,000 hours due to power loss for mechanical/maintenance/design/manufacturer (based on Commercial and Air Carrier operation data compiled by the FAA)
Single engine reciprocating powered aircraft 1.33
Multi-engine reciprocating powered aircraft 0.51
Multi-engine turboprop powered aircraft 0.17
S/E turboprop aircraft excluding agricultural aircraft 0
Powerplant shutdowns per 1,000 hours (Commercial/Air Carrier data) Average of selected powerplants, 1997
Reciprocating powerplant average 0.208
Turboprop powerplant average 0.041
Selected Aircraft Accident Analysis - Certification through 1999 - U.S. Fleet
Piper Malibu(sic) Cessna Caravan Socata TBM700 Pilatus PC-12
Certification Date 1983 1984 1988 1994
U.S. Fleet Size 749 821 74 133
Accidents 79 59 5 1
Fatal Accidents 25 27 1 0
Accidents due to
powerplant
malfunction / failure 14 2 0 0
Cumulative flight
hours 1,100,150 3,145,272 161,406 134,234
Accident rate
per 100,000 hrs. 7.18 1.88 3.10 0.74
Fatal Accident rate
per 100,000 hrs. 2.27 0.86 0.62 0
Power loss accident rate
per 100,000 hrs. 1.27 0.064 0 0
*1 non-U.S. registered PC-12 experienced an accident due to powerplant loss due to mechanical malfunction / failure
Conclusions:
Based on the review and analysis of accident data involving multi and single reciprocating and turboprop powerplant malfunction / failure accidents and analysis of the various powerplant reliability data available, a single turboprop powered aircraft, with adequate backup systems provided in it's design, will be more reliable, involved in fewer powerplant malfunction / failure related accidents than that of single or multi reciprocating powered fixed wing aircraft and comparable to the reliability of a multi-turboprop powered aircraft
The Oasis interior Caravan is a very nice airplane (especially if you get one with the G1000). It is also about 2.2 million new. I like the PC12 but it is 4 mil+, and more per hour.