Incident Details
The pilot had landed at his destination during night conditions. While taxiing, he reported being unable to locate the airplane's taxi, landing, or panel lights. The ground controller provided progressive taxi instructions, directing the pilot to make a right turn onto taxiway 'B' and to 'expedite' crossing runway 1/19. The pilot executed the right turn onto taxiway 'B' and applied power. He stated that it was 'absolutely dark' and that he could no longer see the taxiway center line lights.
Sequence of Events
After applying power, the pilot lost control of the airplane. The aircraft struck the sign for the 'P/L/B' intersection and continued approximately 50 feet past the sign, coming to rest in the runway 1/19 safety area.
Lighting and Inspection
Taxiway 'B' was equipped with center line lighting only, and all of those lights were functional at the time of the incident. Examination of the wreckage revealed no pre-impact abnormalities. A functional check of the airplane's landing and taxi light showed it operated normally.
Pilot Experience
The pilot reported approximately 210 hours of total flight experience, of which about 65 hours were in the same make and model. He stated he had about 10 hours of night flight experience and had not flown at night since 1973.