LAX04CA013

The Starduster collided with a parked and unoccupied Piper, while taxiing into a parking spot. While attempting to line the Starduster up with the parking line, the pilot was looking off the left wing. The right interplane-strut of the Starduster collided with the Piper's nose spinner. The propeller of the Starduster then made contact with the other airplane's right wing. The pilot noted no mechanical problems with his airplane.

On October 13, 2003, about 1700 Pacific daylight time, an experimental Cleveland Orson Starduster II SA300 biplane, N379C, collided with a parked and unoccupied Piper PA28-235, N8908W, while taxiing from landing at Stockton Metropolitan Airport (SCK), Stockton, California. The pilot was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The commercial pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The personal cross-country flight departed Sacramento Executive Airport (SAC), Sacramento, California, about 1630, en route to Stockton Metropolitan. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.

In a written statement, the pilot reported that after a successful landing, he taxied to the Stockton Jet Service Ramp. While turning into a parking space, he collided with an unseen airplane.

In a telephone conversation, the pilot reported that he was sitting in the rear cockpit, which is appropriate for solo flight. After locating a parking spot, he was looking out to left of the airplane to position it over the parking line. The Starduster's right wing collided with the Piper's nose spinner. The propeller on the Starduster then made contact with the Piper's right wing. The pilot did not report any mechanical problems with the airplane.