What happened
A student pilot landed a Cessna (N487 and N48727) on runway 36R. Following the landing, the local controller instructed the pilot to exit the runway via taxiway Juliet and to continue taxiing toward the ramp. The pilot stopped the aircraft just past the hold short line on taxiway Juliet to complete the after-landing checklist. After finishing the checklist, the pilot switched frequencies to ground control but had not yet established contact with the ground controller when the collision occurred.
At the same time, a Helldiver (N92879) was being held short of runway 36R on taxiway Juliet because the Cessna had been occupying the runway. The pilot of the Helldiver reported that several minutes after the Cessna cleared runway 36R, ground control cleared the Helldiver to taxi via taxiway Juliet and Charlie toward parking. As the Helldiver crossed runway 36R, its propeller struck the stopped Cessna.
The investigation
The investigation included a review of audio tapes, which revealed a duty transfer between two different ground controllers occurred after both aircraft had landed but before the Helldiver received taxi instructions. The pilot of the Helldiver stated that S-turns were not performed during the taxi because the taxiways were too narrow. The impact from the propeller caused damage to the Cessna's right elevator, right horizontal stabilizer, vertical stabilizer, and rudder.
Findings
Investigators found that neither the local controller nor either of the ground controllers attempted to contact the stopped Cessna after the initial taxi instructions had been issued. The collision occurred because the Cessna remained stopped on the taxiway while performing checklist procedures.