What happened
During a period of light snow and fog with visibility limited to one mile, company personnel were managing an aircraft taxiing alongside active snow removal operations. Two supervisors, operating in separate vehicles equipped with VHF/FM radios, were overseeing the movement of snow removal crews on the runways and taxiways.
The pilot-in-command reported that his attention was focused on the snowbanks located on the right side of the taxiway at the time of the incident. During this period, the pilot suddenly observed a snowplow positioned on the left side of the aircraft. The pilot was unable to stop the aircraft before it struck the snowplow.
The driver of the snowplow stated that he neither saw nor heard the aircraft taxiing toward his position. Furthermore, the driver noted that the snow removal supervisors did not provide any alerts regarding the movement of the aircraft. The driver believed that aircraft operations were restricted to a different runway and understood he was authorized to perform snow removal on the taxiway.
Post-accident examination determined that the aircraft was traveling on the taxiway centerline, while the snowplow was positioned on the left side of the taxiway.