Incident Overview
On July 20, 2008, at approximately 1530 Pacific daylight time, an Extra Flugzeugproduktions-und EA 300/L, registration N981KM, collided on the ground with a Cessna TR182, registration N5146S, at Reid-Hillview Airport of Santa Clara County (RHV), San Jose, California. Both aircraft were operating under 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot of the EA 300 and the private pilot of the TR 182 were not injured. The EA 300 sustained minor damage, while the TR 182 sustained substantial damage to the tail section. Both aircraft had been on local area flights; the EA 300 departed at 1450, and the TR 182 departed at 1445. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed; no flight plan had been filed for either flight.
Sequence of Events
The pilot of the TR 182 reported landing on runway 31R and exiting onto taxiway Delta. Local tower controllers advised him to hold short of taxiway Zulu and contact ground control on the appropriate frequency. The pilot followed the instructions and contacted ground control but did not hear a response upon his initial call. He contacted ground control again, and the controller issued a clearance to taxi to parking via taxiway Zulu. While reading back the clearance, the pilot felt the airplane "jump and shutter" and saw debris fly from behind him forward into his airplane's propeller. He then realized that an airplane behind him had collided with the tail of his airplane.
The pilot of the EA 300 stated that he landed on runway 31L and followed controllers' instructions to exit the runway at taxiway Delta and hold short of runway 31R. During the turn onto Delta, he saw the TR 182 ahead on the taxiway, holding short of Zulu. About one minute later, he was cleared to cross runway 31R, hold short of taxiway Zulu, and contact ground control. He taxied about 50 yards on taxiway Delta, across the runway and across taxiway Yankee, towards the Zulu taxiway. The pilot stated that the nose of his airplane blocked his forward view, and he did not perform S-turns to identify any obstacles in front of him. He also reported that he forgot that he had seen the TR 182 ahead. The pilot was taxiing with idle power and about to contact ground control when the propeller of his airplane collided with the rudder and elevator of the TR 182.
Damage
The propeller of the EA 300 received minor damage, while the elevator, vertical stabilizer, and rudder of the TR 182 sustained substantial damage.