What happened
On 10 January 2014, at approximately 1500 UTC, a collision occurred on the ground at Fairoaks Airport, Surrey. The incident involved a Pilatus PC-12/45, registration M-YBLS, and a Beech B200GT King Air, registration M-SYGB.
During a pre-flight external inspection, the pilot of the M-YBLS noted that the M-SYGB was parked adjacent to the left side of his aircraft. Unlike the standard parallel parking arrangement, the King Air was positioned with its nose pointing 45 degrees to the left of the parallel heading. After completing necessary checks and starting the single Pratt & Whitney PT6 67B engine, the pilot received clearance to taxi toward the runway.
As the pilot taxied straight ahead, the left wingtip of the M-YBLS made contact with the right aileron and wingtip of the M-SYGB. Following the impact, the airfield flight information service officer (AFISO) notified the pilot, who then brought the aircraft to a halt. The collision resulted in no injuries, though the M-YBLS sustained cracked paint on its left wingtip, and the M-SYGB suffered damage to its right aileron and wingtip.
The investigation
The investigation was based on the aircraft accident report submitted by the pilot. Investigators examined the positioning of the aircraft prior to the movement and the pilot's actions during the taxi phase. It was established that the pilot had observed the unusual 45-degree angle of the adjacent aircraft during his initial walk-around but proceeded with the flight without requesting a repositioning of the parked aircraft or requesting marshaling assistance.