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GAA18CA087

2017-12-18 · Willow, Alaska, United States · None · 1 aircraft · Status: Completed

Airport UUO

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The other pilot’s failure to see and avoid another airplane parked on the taxiway while taxiing in sun glare conditions.

Factual narrative

The pilot of the Piper airplane reported that, while taxiing from the runway to his tie-down space, he was taxiing "into the sun". He added that, before he could react, he struck the tail of a Maule airplane, which was stopped on the taxiway. The pilot of the Maule airplane reported to the Federal Aviation Administration inspector that he was planning to depart and had stopped on the taxiway to put on his seat belt, when his airplane was struck from behind. The Piper sustained substantial damage to the right wing lift strut; the Maule sustained substantial damage to the empennage. The Piper and Maule pilots reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplanes that would have precluded normal operation. The airplane pilot reported that, while taxiing from the runway to his tie-down space, he was taxiing "into the sun." He added that, before he could react, he struck the tail of another airplane, which was stopped on the taxiway. The pilot of the stopped airplane reported to the Federal Aviation Administration inspector that he was planning to depart and had stopped on the taxiway to put on his seat belt when his airplane was struck from behind. The taxiing airplane sustained substantial damage to the right wing lift strut; the stopped airplane sustained substantial damage to the empennage. Both pilots reported that there were no preaccident mechanical failures or malfunctions with their airplanes that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

FAA avdata. C = Cause, F = Factor.

  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring other aircraft-Pilot of other aircraft - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Aircraft-Effect on operation - C
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Light condition-Glare-Effect on personnel
  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Monitoring other aircraft-Pilot - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Aircraft-Effect on operation - C
  • — Environmental issues-Conditions/weather/phenomena-Light condition-Glare-Effect on personnel

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2017_GAA18CA087.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.

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