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Atlas / NTSB / GAA18CA275

NTSB CAROL · Event

Event GAA18CA275

2018-05-11 Chandler, Arizona, United States Airport · CHD None 1 aircraft Status: Completed

Aircraft involved

Probable cause & findings

The other pilot’s failure to stop and yield to the airplane taxiing on the taxiway, which resulted in a ground collision.

Factual narrative

According to the pilot in the low-wing airplane, he was cleared by ground control to taxi to runway 22R via "Alpha and November." Taxiway Alpha runs parallel to runway 22R. The pilot approached taxiway Alpha via taxiway Mike, and before entering the intersection of taxiways Alpha and Mike, he "looked in all directions for aircraft" and then proceeded to make a left turn onto taxiway Alpha without stopping. His airplane's right wing collided with the left side of another airplane already taxing via Alpha to 22R. He asserted that the other airplane was moving very fast when the collision occurred. His airplane sustained substantial damage to the right aileron. According to the student pilot in the high wing airplane, he received clearance from ground control to taxi to runway 22R via "Alpha and November." He recalled that he was established on Alpha and heading toward 22R with his landing lights on. He saw the low wing airplane approaching the intersection of taxiway Alpha and Mike from the non-movement area. He reported that the low-wing airplane made a left turn onto taxiway Alpha without stopping. The low-wing airplane's right wing collided with the left side of his airplane. His airplane sustained damage to the left-wing lift strut, the left wing support struts, and the windscreen. Both pilots reported that there were no mechanical malfunctions or failures with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation. According to the pilot in the low-wing airplane, he was cleared by ground control to taxi to runway 22R via "Alpha and November." Taxiway Alpha runs parallel to runway 22R. The pilot approached taxiway Alpha via taxiway Mike, and before entering the intersection of taxiways Alpha and Mike, he "looked in all directions for aircraft" and then proceeded to turn left onto taxiway Alpha without stopping. His airplane's right wing collided with the left side of another airplane already taxiing via Alpha to 22R. He asserted that the other airplane was moving very fast when the collision occurred. His airplane sustained substantial damage to the right aileron. According to the student pilot in the high-wing airplane, he received clearance from ground control to taxi to runway 22R via "Alpha and November." He recalled that he was established on Alpha and heading toward 22R with his landing lights on. He saw the low-wing airplane approaching the intersection of taxiway Alpha and Mike from the nonmovement area. He reported that the low-wing airplane turned left onto taxiway Alpha without stopping. The low-wing airplane's right wing collided with the left side of his airplane. His airplane sustained damage to the left-wing lift strut, the left-wing support struts, and the windscreen. Both pilots reported that there were no preaccident mechanical malfunctions or failures with their airplanes that would have precluded normal operation. Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database Retrieved: 2026-02-12

NTSB Findings

Hierarchical cause / factor breakdown from the FAA bulk avdata database. Each finding tagged C (Cause) or F (Factor).

  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Task monitoring/vigilance-Pilot of other aircraft - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Aircraft-Effect on operation - C
  • C Personnel issues-Psychological-Attention/monitoring-Task monitoring/vigilance-Pilot - C
  • C Environmental issues-Physical environment-Object/animal/substance-Aircraft-Effect on operation - C

Verbatim from NTSB's published report. Source file NTSB_2018_GAA18CA275.txt. Findings + structured fields enriched from FAA avall.mdb. Full investigation docket on data.ntsb.gov ↗.