I agree, it is obvious that pilot error and engine failures are some of the most common crash causes.
No one is immune to pilot error, but I do not want to get more deep into details about the most common reasons for engine failure leading to fatalities, I think you know what I mean. The airplane flies very good with the engine stopped just as the glider was doing when I took my first flying lesson, of course the L/D ratio is lower.
All you need is some free surface on ground if you are too low. If you don't have that, you are in big trouble. However, you know these aspects, don't want to detail them anymore, what I want to point out is that I figure out there is a gross difference between an inlfight breakup, loosing a wing vs loosing engine power.
Last edited by David36; 27th Dec 2012 at 19:30.