Hartford-Brainard Airport
Aircraft Accident/Incident Report

Hartford, Connecticut 06114
Friday, October 5, 2007 14:45 EDT

NTSB Narrative Summary Released at Completion of Accident

The airplane was substantially damaged when it struck four parked airplanes while taxiing for parking after landing. According to the pilot, he initially received taxi instructions from the air traffic control tower, and then was guided by marshallers who used hand signals to convey further instructions. A nearby aviation convention resulted in additional aircraft at the airport, and airplanes were parked on the grass along the right side of the taxiway. The marshaller stated that he instructed the pilot to slow down, but that the airplane "continued approximately 300 feet," until it collided with a parked airplane. The passenger stated that at the time of the initial collision, the airplane was traveling at a speed of approximately 10 to 12 knots, and that just prior to the initial collision, he informed the pilot that he was "too far to the right." The right wing tip of the accident airplane struck the propeller and spinner of an unoccupied SR22 that was parked facing the taxiway. The impact caused the pilot's hand to advance the throttle, then the accident airplane turned rapidly to the right and struck three additional parked airplanes. Subsequent to the accident, the pilot stated that being on the taxiway centerline gave him a false sense of security, that his "gaze and attention shifted" to the marshaller, and that he failed to recognize that he would not clear the parked airplanes unless he deviated significantly from the centerline. The pilot did not report any brake or steering system malfunctions and there was no indication that the marshaller signaled the pilot to deviate from the centerline to avoid the collision. On-site measurements confirmed that maintaining the taxiway centerline would result in minimal or no clearance with the parked airplanes.

NTSB Probable Cause Narrative

The pilot's failure to maintain adequate clearance from a parked airplane while taxiing. Contributing to the accident was the proximity of the parked airplanes to the taxiway and the failure of the marshaller to provide adequate guidance.

Event Information

Type of Event Accident
Event Date 10/5/2007
Event Day of the Week Friday
Time of Event 1445
Event Time Zone Eastern Daylight Time
Event City Hartford
Event State CONNECTICUT
Event Country --
Zipcode of the event site 06114
Event Date Year 2007
Event Date Month 10
MidAir Collision Indicator No
On Ground Collision occurred ? No
Event Location Latitude 404412N
Event Location Longitude 0723858W
Event Location Airport Hartford-Brainard
Event Location Nearest Airport ID HFD
Indicates whether the acc/inc occurred off or on an airport On Airport
Distance from airport in statute miles 1
Degrees magnetic from airport --
Airport Elevation 18
Weather Briefing Completeness --
Investigator's weather source Pilot
Time of the weather observation 1453 Eastern Daylight Time
Direction of event from weather observation facility (degrees) --
Weather Observation Facility ID HFD
Elevation of weather observation facility 18
Distance of event from weather observation facility (units?) --
Time Zone of the weather observation EDT
Lighting Conditions Day
Lowest Ceiling Height --
Lowest Non-Ceiling Height --
Sky/Lowest/Cloud Conditions Clear
Sky Condition for Lowest Ceiling None
Visibility Runway Visual Range (Feet) --
Visibility Runway Visual Value (Statute Miles) --
Visibility (Statute Miles) 10
Air Temperature at event time (in degrees celsius) 29
Dew Point at event time (in degress fahrenheit) 18
Wind Direction (degrees magnetic) 200
Variable Wind Indicator Wind direction could be determined
Wind Speed (knots) 7
Wind Velocity Indicator --
Wind Gust Indicator Not Gusting
Wind Gust (knots) --
Altimeter Setting at event time (in. Hg) 30.22
Density Altitude (feet) --
Intensity of Precipitation --
METAR weather report --
Event Highest Injury None
On Ground, Fatal Injuries --
On Ground, Minor Injuries --
On Ground, Serious Injuries --
Injury Total Fatal --
Injury Total Minor --
Injury Total None 2
Injury Total Serious --
Injury Total All --
Investigating Agency NTSB
NTSB Docket Number (internal use) 25094
NTSB Notification Source FAA New England ROC
NTSB Notification Date --
NTSB Notification Time --
Fiche Number and/or location -used to find docket information --
Date of most recent change to record Feb 24 2009 3:42PM
User who most recently changed record grer
Basic weather conditions Visual Meteorological Cond
FAA District Office --

Aircraft Involved

Aircraft #1

Aircraft Registration Number N5205X
NTSB Number NYC08LA004
Missing Aircraft Indicator --
Federal Aviation Reg. Part Part 91: General Aviation
Type of Flight Plan filed None
Flight plan Was Activated? No
Damage Substantial
Aircraft Fire None
Aircraft Explosion None
Aircraft Manufacturer's Full Name Cirrus Design
Aircraft Model SR22
Aircraft Series Identifier --
Aircraft Serial Number 0380
Certified Max Gross Weight 3400
Aircraft Category Airplane
Aircraft Registration Class --
Aircraft is a homebuilt? No
Flight Crew Seats --
Cabin Crew Seats --
Passenger Seats --
Total number of seats on the aircraft 4
Number of Engines 1
Fixed gear or retractable gear Fixed
Aircraft, Type of Last Inspection Annual
Date of Last Inspection Dec 1 2005 12:00AM
Airframe hours since last inspection 105
Airframe Hours 960
ELT Installed Yes
ELT Activated No
ELT Aided Location of Event Site No
ELT Type Unknown
Aircraft Owner Name Highfliers LLC
Aircraft Owner Street Address --
Aircraft Owner City Ambler
Aircraft Owner State PA
Aircraft Owner Country USA
Aircraft Owner Zipcode 19002
Operator is an individual? Yes
Operator Name Rafal Wyszkowski
Operator Same as Owner? No
Operator Is Doing Business As --
Operator Address Same as Owner? No
Operator Street Address --
Operator City Ambler
Operator State PA
Operator Country USA
Operator Zip code 19002
Operator Code --
Owner has at least one certificate None
Other Operator of large aircraft? No
Certified for Part 133 or 137 Operation --
Operator Certificate Number --
Indicates whether an air carrier operation was scheduled or not --
Indicates Domestic or International Flight --
Operator carrying Pax/Cargo/Mail --
Type of Flying (Per_Bus / Primary) Personal
Second Pilot on Board No
Departure Point Same as Event No
Departure Airport Code N51
Departure City Readington
Departure State NY
Departure Country USA
Departure Time 1345
Departure Time Zone EDT
Destination Same as Local Flt crash at destination city
Destination Airport Code HFD
Destination City Hartford
Destination State CT
Destination Country USA
Specific Phase of Flight --
Report sent to ICAO? --
Evacuation occurred --
Date of most recent change to record Feb 23 2009 1:56PM
User who most recently changed record grer
Since inspection or accident Time of Accident
Event Location Runway Number and Location N/A
Runway Length --
Runway Width --
Sight Seeing flight No
Air Medical Flight No
Medical Flight --