What happened
On 6 April 2000, at approximately 1540 hrs, an AA-1A Grumman, registration D-EKAV, was taxiing at Blackpool Airport following a flight from Humberside. The pilot was directed to taxi via taxiway Alpha and the B3 hold toward a hangar apron. Upon reaching the hangar area, the pilot encountered an obstruction caused by a large twin-engine aircraft blocking the primary access route. Due to the high density of parked aircraft in the area, the pilot elected to park the aircraft in a space between two existing rows of light aircraft.
To reach the chosen spot, the pilot performed a sharp 90-degree right turn and moved forward. Once the aircraft came to a stop with the brakes engaged, the pilot observed a nearby high-wing Cessna 172 moving backward toward the D-EKAV. In an attempt to avoid a collision, the pilot attempted to steer the aircraft to the right, but the propeller of the D-EKAV struck the fiberglass wingtip of the Cessna 172. There were no injuries to the pilot, and while the D-EKAV sustained no damage, the Cessna 172 suffered damage to its wingtip.
The investigation
Investigators examined the conditions at Blackpool Airport, noting that the apron is frequently congested due to high daily traffic volumes. The investigation looked into the movement of the parked Cessna 172. While the pilot of the D-EKAV reported that the Cessna 172 moved toward him, a spokesperson for the hangar management company suggested the damage may have occurred when the pilot attempted to maneuver the low-wing aircraft under the high-wing of the parked Cessna 172.
It was established that the Cessna 172 was neither chocked nor tied down at the time of the incident. There were no witnesses to the event, and it could not be confirmed if the parking brake of the Cessna 172 had been applied. The pilot of the D-EKAV later acknowledged that the congested nature of the parking area should have prompted a search for an alternative parking location.