A DC9-30 INCURRED DAMAGE TO THE R WINGTIP AND AN AILERON WHILE BEING PUSHED OUT OF A HANGAR.

Date: 1997-11 · Aircraft: DC-9 30

Anomalies: aircraft-equipment-problem-critical|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-published-material-policy|deviation-discrepancy-procedural-far|other-unspecified

Synopsis

A DC9-30 INCURRED DAMAGE TO THE R WINGTIP AND AN AILERON WHILE BEING PUSHED OUT OF A HANGAR.

Narrative

I WORK LINE MAINT FOR ACR AT ZZZ ARPT. MY NORMAL SHIFT IS XA30 TO XI30. ON MONDAY I WAS ASSIGNED WITH 1 OTHER MECH ACFT ABC; A DC9-30. OUR JOB WAS TO COMPLETE AN OVERNIGHT CHK AND TAKE THE ACFT TO THE HANGAR FOR A WASH AND RETURN IT TO GATE FOR AN XJ30 DEP. WE HOOKED UP A TUG AND TOW BAR AND TOWED THE ACFT TO THE WASH HANGAR. I DROVE THE TUG; MY PARTNER RODE BRAKES. WE WERE MET AT THE HANGAR BY OUR LEAD WHO OPENED THE DOORS AND WATCHED OUR WINGS WHILE PUTTING THE ACFT INTO THE HANGAR. AT APPROX XG30 WE RETURNED WITH OUR LEAD TO TAKE THE ACFT OUT. I ONCE AGAIN DROVE THE TUG; MY PARTNER RODE BRAKES IN THE ACFT; OUR LEAD WATCHED WINGS AND HANDLED THE DOORS. WE GOT THE ACFT TO THE TERMINAL GATE. WE PUSHED OUR ACFT BACK OFF THE GATE; SPRAYED IT AND RETURNED IT TO THE GATE. SHORTLY BEFORE XI00 I HEARD ON THE RADIO THAT AN FAA INSPECTOR HAD FOUND DAMAGE ON THE R WING OF THE ACFT. I WALKED OUT WITH A COUPLE OF FOREMEN TO LOOK AT THE DAMAGE. THERE WAS A SCRAPE MARK ON THE UNDERSIDE OF THE R WING INBOARD OF THE WINGTIP RUNNING FROM JUST AFT OF THE SLAT TO THE TRAILING EDGE. THE FIBERGLAS ON THE TRAILING EDGE WAS BROKEN THROUGH. THIS DAMAGE WAS NOT PRESENT WHEN WE DID OUR CHK 5 HRS PREVIOUSLY. EITHER SOMEONE DROVE UNDER THE WING IN THE HANGAR OR AT THE GATE; OR I PULLED OR PUSHED IT OVER SOMETHING WITH THE TUG. AT THE TIME I'M WRITING THIS; IT HAS NOT BEEN DETERMINED WHICH IN FACT OCCURRED. I DO KNOW THOUGH HOW I COULD HAVE CAUSED THE DAMAGE. DIRECTLY ACROSS FROM THE ENTRANCE TO HANGAR IS AN FBO HANGAR SURROUNDED BY A CHAIN LINK FENCE. MY LEAD CLRED MY WINGS GOING IN AND OUT OF THE HANGAR. I HAD NO ONE ON THE FAR SIDE BY THE FBO HANGAR AS I PUSHED OUT. THE DAMAGE COULD HAVE BEEN DONE AS THE WING OVERRODE A FENCE POST AT THE FBO HANGAR.

Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.