N1044YCessna 180

On August 15, 2008, about 1530 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 180, N1044Y, operated by the South Carolina Forestry Commission, was substantially damaged when it struck a standing Beech J35, N4398D, while taxiing at Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA), Spartanburg, South Carolina. The certificated airline transport pilot of the Cessna, and the certificated commercial pilot of the Beech, were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The Cessna was operating on a company visual flight rules flight plan for the public use aerial observation flight. The Beech was not operating on a flight plan for the local personal flight, which was conducted under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.

According to the pilot of the tailwheel-equipped Cessna, following an uneventful 2.5 hour local aerial observation flight, he was returning to the departure airport. The pilot announced his position and intentions about 5 miles from the airport, and as he neared the airport, he heard glider traffic communications on the radio. About 2 miles from the airport, the tow master of the glider operations advised the pilot that glider winch operations were in progress.

The Cessna subsequently landed, and taxied off the runway toward the hangar area. The pilot continued along the taxiway, looking out of the side windows as he taxied. When he turned right onto a taxiway that led directly to the hangar area, he felt a "thump" and saw a man's face through his left window. He immediately shut down the engine, exited the airplane, and saw that the Cessna's propeller had torn into the Beech's left wing fuel tank. The Beech pilot then exited his airplane without incident.

According to the pilot of the Beech, he had just completed changing the oil in the airplane, and he was performing an extended run-up prior to departing on a brief local flight. He was parked near the edge of the ramp area, and believed that sufficient room was available for airplanes to exit the ramp or taxiway without difficulty. About 5 minutes into the engine run, the Beech pilot noticed a "tail dragger coming down the taxiway fairly fast." As the Cessna approached the intersection of the taxiway and the ramp area where the Beech was parked, the Cessna "came whipping around the corner" and struck the Beech. The propellers from both airplanes contacted the left wings of the opposite airplanes.

The pilot of the Cessna held an airline transport pilot certificate with ratings for airplane single and multiengine land, and instrument airplane. He reported 17,000 total hours of flight experience, 10,000 hours of which were in the accident airplane make and model.

The weather conditions reported at SPA, at 1535, included winds from 070 degrees at 4 knots, 10 statute miles visibility, scattered clouds at 4,300 feet, and scattered clouds at 7,000 feet.

The Federal Aviation Administration Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3A) states, "Since a tailwheel-type airplane rests on the tailwheel as well as the main landing wheels, it assumes a nose-high attitude when on the ground…Consequently, objects directly ahead of the airplane are difficult, if not impossible, to see. To observe and avoid colliding with any objects or hazardous surface conditions, the pilot should alternately turn the nose from one side to the other – that is, zigzag, or make a series of short S-turns while taxiing forward."

On March 11, 2008, about 1715 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 180, N1044Y, operated by the South Carolina Forest Commission, was substantially damaged during landing at Spartanburg Downtown Memorial Airport (SPA), Spartanburg, South Carolina. The certificated commercial pilot was not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and a company visual flight rules (VFR) flight plan was filed for the local public use flight, conducted under 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91.

According to the pilot, after joining the downwind traffic pattern leg for landing on runway 23, he observed a "Lear 45" taxi on to the runway for departure. As he turned the airplane on to the left base leg, he noticed that the Learjet was still on the runway. After joining the final approach leg, the Learjet started the takeoff roll and lifted off. As the pilot flared for touchdown, the accident airplane was "pushed hard" to the right, the right main landing gear touched down, the airplane bounced, and "threw to the left hard." The left wing then made ground contact and the airplane ground looped.

According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) records, the pilot held a commercial pilot certificate with a rating for airplane single-engine land. His most recent FAA second-class medical certificate was issued January 30, 2008. He reported 2,030.8 hours of flight experience.

According to FAA and maintenance records, the airplane was manufactured in 1957. The airplane's most recent annual inspection was completed on September 17, 2007. At the time of the inspection, the airplane had accumulated 9,620 total hours of operation and the engine had accumulated 78 hours of operation since its last overhaul.

A recorded weather observation taken at Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP), Greenville, South Carolina, located approximately 13 nautical miles west of the accident site, about 22 minutes prior to the accident, included; winds at 260 degrees at 9 knots, 10 statute miles visibility, broken clouds at 7,000 feet, broken clouds at 9,000 feet, temperature 17 degrees Celsius, dew point 1 degree Celsius, and an altimeter setting of 29.99 inches of mercury.

According to the Airport Facility Directory, SPA was a public use airport. It had one runway, oriented in a 5/23 configuration. Runway 23 was asphalt, in good condition. It was 5,202 feet long by 100 feet wide and was equipped with a vertical approach slope indicator.

Examination of the airplane by an FAA inspector revealed that the left wing aft spar, and two of its ribs were bent. The left wing skin was buckled and wrinkled, and the left aileron and elevator were damaged.

According to the Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM), pilots should adjust their operations and flight path as necessary to preclude serious wake encounters. When landing behind a departing larger aircraft on the same runway, they should note where the larger aircraft's rotation point was and land well before the rotation point.

The AIM also states that government and industry groups are making concerted efforts to minimize or eliminate the hazards of trailing vortices. However, the flight disciplines necessary to ensure vortex avoidance during VFR operations must be exercised by the pilot. Vortex visualization and avoidance procedures should be exercised by the pilot using the same degree of concern as in collision avoidance and that wake turbulence may be encountered by aircraft in flight as well as when operating on the airport movement area.