Primary finding
Probable cause
the pilot's failure to maintain adequate obstruction clearance while taxiing. A factor in the accident was the pilot's attention being diverted by the movement of two trucks.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The pilot was taxiing the aircraft back to its parking space on the taxiway and had to pass some men and heavy equipment which were engaged in widening the taxiway. The pilot reported that as she began to pass the construction zone she was watching two trucks moving on her right side and misjudged the left wing clearance from a steam roller. The left wing tip collided with the steam roller, damaging the outboard 12 inches of the left wing.
Source record
Factual narrative
On June 12, 1993, at 0958 mountain standard time, a Alon A2, N6515Q, collided with a steam roller during a post landing taxi operation at the Goodyear, Arizona, airport. The aircraft was owned and operated by the pilot. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at time and no flight plan was filed for the operation. The aircraft incurred substantial damage. The steam roller was not damaged. The certificated private pilot and the heavy equipment operator were not injured. The flight originated at the Goodyear airport on the day of the mishap at about 0900 hours as a local pattern practice flight. In her written statement, the pilot said that she was taxiing the aircraft back to its parking space on the taxiway and had to pass some men and heavy equipment which were engaged in widening the taxiway. The pilot reported that as she began to pass the construction zone she was watching two trucks moving on her right side and misjudged the left wing clearance from a steam roller. The left wing tip collided with the steam roller, damaging the outboard 12 inches of the left wing. -