Incident Overview
On a snowy day with visibility reported at half a mile, two aircraft were involved in a taxiway collision. After landing, the captain of Northwest Airlines (NWA) flight 142 stated that they received taxi instructions from the Air Traffic Control Tower (ATCT) to proceed to the gate. The captain noted that their taxi speed was slow due to snow covering the taxiways and blowing snow. They stopped on the main taxiway because another airplane was blocking the entrance to the ramp area. ATCT then instructed NWA 142 to hold their position until the obstruction was moved.
Sequence of Events
The captain of Turkish Airlines flight 6 (THY6) reported seeing NWA 142 on the taxiway, with the tail of the NWA aircraft extending over the parallel taxiway that THY6 was using. THY6 stopped short of the airplane. ATCT instructed THY6 to continue taxiing. The THY6 captain responded that they were unable to move ahead. ATCT repeated the instruction to continue. The captain then started to taxi but decided they could not get around NWA 142. They stopped, but the aircraft slid into the tail of the NWA plane.
Air Traffic Control Account
The ATCT ground controller stated that THY6 was taxiing northbound for runway 9R. The controller observed THY6 holding by A10 and again restated the instructions. THY6 acknowledged and continued taxiing toward A9. The aircraft turned at A9 and clipped the rudder of the NWA DC-9 on Taxiway Bravo.
Weather Conditions
At the time of the incident, reported visibility was 1/2 mile with light snow and mist. The runway visual range for runway 14R was reported as 4,000 feet, variable to 6,000 feet. Winds were from 070 degrees at 6 knots.