Beech 1900D N122UX accident near St. Louis, Missouri

Probable cause

The ground crew's failure to ensure airplane clearance from the building while parking the airplane. Contributing to the accident was the flight crew's unprofessional behavior and the lack of marshaling procedures for the ground crew.

NTSB analysis

The scheduled domestic passenger flight was taxiing to parking and while turning into a parking space, the empennage struck the overhang to the adjacent building resulting in substantial damage. An examination of the airplane's systems revealed no anomalies. Neither the captain nor the first officer could see the empennage during the turn. Both the marshaler and the wing walker felt that the empennage was clear of the building. At the time of the accident, company procedures for turning an airplane into its parking position did not exist. Prior to the impact, the flight crew conversations deviated from checklists and required communications for critical flight phases, landing, and taxi operations and they were engaged in nonessential communications. The flight crew's lack of professionalism and deviation from essential communications led to a lack of situational awareness.

Text from the NTSB. Open the NTSB docket for DEN08LA151 for the full record.