Primary finding
Probable cause
The flight instructor’s failure to maintain clearance from a fence during taxi. Contributing to the accident was the low light conditions and obstacles adjacent to the deice bay.
Investigator assessment
Analysis narrative
The flight instructor and pilot undergoing instruction were preparing for a pre-sunrise instructional flight. The airplane was standing at an unlit deice bay adjacent to a hangar, parked airplane, and a chain-link fence. As the flight instructor attempted to maneuver around the parked airplane and taxi out of the deice bay, the right wing impacted the top of the chain-link fence. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing. The pilots reported there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.