Incident Overview
During taxi to parking in heavy rain, the flight crew reported receiving marshalling instructions. The ramp area was dark, and the aircraft's taxi, navigation, and tail floodlights were illuminated, with windshield wipers operating. The captain stated the yellow guideline into the ramp area was very difficult to see, but he was taxiing within 10 feet of the line.
Collision Details
Both crewmembers said they never saw the tug until after the collision. When the aircraft door was opened, they realized a baggage vehicle had struck the aircraft. The pilot's initial report, as recorded by police, indicated he felt as if the left wing had been pushed hard and observed damage to the left propeller, left wing, and rear baggage carts.
Contributing Factors
The police report noted that the baggage cart was equipped with no lights—only reflectors. The distance from the center of the yellow taxi line to the impact point where debris lay was about 30 feet. A ramp control incident report placed the debris 30 feet from the yellow line and 73 feet from the aircraft containment line.
Witness Statements
The tug driver stated he had been driving as close to the fuchsia (red) line as possible when the collision occurred. The ramp supervisor, who was marshalling the aircraft and witnessed the collision from 100 feet away, reported that the tug and cart approached from the left side of the aircraft, attempting to cross the taxiway. He stated the tug driver did not notice the aircraft taxiing in and tried to avoid the collision by turning left, but the cart struck the airplane, causing damage to the left wing and propeller.