What if the engine quits?
This is a common question, but rest assured, aircraft engines very rarely quit. Most pilots will fly their entire lives without a major engine malfunction. The engine has been designed with dual ignition systems and two spark plugs per cylinder so that if one system fails the engine will continue to run on the second system. The aircraft was designed so that it becomes a glider. Even though the engine may have stopped producing thrust, the wings are still producing lift, so a typical training aircraft can glide as far as 9 miles from an altitude of 6,000 feet above the ground. During this time of descent, the pilot has full use of the flight controls to turn and descend.
