AOPA Pilot Magazine - September 2023 - 22

SE-1, 13 JUL 2023 to 10 AUG 2023
FLYING LIFE
Taxi trouble
Lessons learned from a close call
BY NATALIE BINGHAM HOOVER
THEY SAY LESSONS BEST LEARNED are those that come the hard
way. It's only from suffering through consequences that we are
really motivated to change.
Um, no thank you. I prefer the see-and-avoid method. See
someone else do something silly and avoid doing the same thing
myself. Plus, in aviation, we simply cannot afford to learn every
lesson the hard way. The consequences of poor aeronautical decision
making are a price none of us are willing to pay. Fortunately,
we can learn from other pilots' blunders through accident case
studies or good old-fashioned hangar
talk. In the world of airport taxi operations,
our friendly warning comes in
the form of hot spots. According to the
FAA, " a hot spot is a location on an airport
movement area with a history or
potential risk of collision or runway
incursion, and where heightened attention
by pilots and drivers is necessary. "
Let me tell you about one of the taxiing
lessons I learned from someone else's
hard way. Years ago, I was sitting right
seat in a Bombardier CRJ-200 for what
was then Pinnacle Airlines. It was night,
and we were taxiing out to Runway
36L, one of three parallel north/south
runways at Memphis International
Airport. As we got closer, we swapped
over to tower frequency just in time to
hear them give a takeoff clearance for
36L to a corporate jet, a Lear or Citation
maybe. The exact details are hazy. But
what happened next is crystal clear in
my memory. That jet came barreling down Taxiway M. (We were
on Taxiway N.) A pilot of another aircraft on the ground, who
sounded just as stunned as us, made a call. " That airplane just
took off on the taxiway. " Tower immediately issued a blanket call
to all aircraft on the ground to hold their position until they could
be certain of the location of every aircraft on the field. This was
before the days of ground track transponders.
Our fellow pilot had several things to teach us from his hardearned
lesson. For one, when lining up on a runway, especially
22
AOPA PILOT / September 2023
at night, always check to make sure the runway numbers match
what you are expecting. We all remember the crash of Comair
Flight 5191 that departed from the wrong runway at night, a
runway that was too short for the CRJ-100ER aircraft. Fortynine
people lost their lives that day. The second mistake of our
jet pilot was this: Taxiways are outlined in blue lights at night.
Runways are in white (or yellow toward the end). Third, there
is an FAA designated hot spot there at the beginning of 36L and
taxiways M and N. Now, I don't know if that pilot caused the hot
spot to be developed or if it was there
before the date of his flight, but there
is no excuse for future pilots to make
the same mistake, now that we have a
bright orange-brown circle warning us.
(The FAA defines their colors in a way
that makes us all feel like we shouldn't
have passed kindergarten. Is that class
E airspace designation purple-pink? No,
magenta is the proper term. How about
the middle marker beacon? Orangeyellow?
No. Amber. But I digress.)
None of us out there that night
Runway 36L and taxiways M and N at Memphis
International Airport.
had to make the mistake ourselves to
feel that sick feeling you get when you
realize how narrowly a catastrophe was
avoided. What if someone had been
cleared to cross Taxiway M? What if
we had been taxiing down Taxiway M
and not Taxiway N with our jet full of
50 passengers? Thank God that story
ended with nothing more than words
uttered which will not be mentioned
here, and some probable job hunting for the pilot involved.
So, here's the takeaway: Make double sure you are taking off
on the right runway.
Study airport layouts
in advance so you can
watch out for hot spots.
Oh, and don't take off on
the blue runway.
myaviation101.com
NATALIE BINGHAM HOOVER
began flying in 2004. After
corporate and airline work, she
now serves as an FAA designated
examiner and chief instructor of a
flight school in Mississippi.
http://www.myaviation101.com
AOPA Pilot Magazine - September 2023

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