This is an excerpt from a report made to the Aviation Safety Reporting System. The narrative is written by the pilot, rather than FAA or NTSB officials. To maintain anonymity, many details, such as aircraft model or airport, are often scrubbed from the reports.
My CFI and I landed on Runway XX after completing a standard traffic pattern with appropriate and accurate radio calls about our position at the time before the incident occurred.
After coming to a stop where the grass runway, XY/XZ, meets XA/XX, we announced back taxi over the radio. As we came around facing a XXX heading for back taxi to the beginning of Runway XX, we see a crop duster on short final for Runway XX.
Immediately, we attempt to pull off the runway at the XY/XZ concrete extensions attached to XA/XX in order to avoid a potential meeting between our aircraft and the crop duster.
We hear over the radio that the crop duster is going around and asking if we want to wait for him to land or if we are going to back taxi. Since we are still located on the active runway, we announce loud and clear that we are going to continue our back taxi to the start of Runway XX.
As we have approximately 1,000 feet left to the beginning of Runway XX, we see the crop duster turn final once again, unannounced, and continue a descent to the runway as we are back taxiing on the active runway.
Instead of going around, the crop duster overflies us at about 10 to 20 feet and lands behind us while we are still on the active runway.
My CFI and I agreed that the actions of the crop-duster were grossly negligent and outright dangerous. It poses a significant hazard to flight safety and should be addressed for the safety of future flights.
My CFI and I were following all known rules and regulations when conducting our traffic pattern and back taxi. We also provided accurate and clear radio broadcasts that were confirmed to be heard by the pilot of the crop-duster who responded over the radio.
We believe this event was caused by deliberate and dangerous decision-making from the pilot of the crop duster who decided to land on an active runway with our aircraft still having clear possession over that runway via radio-announced back taxi.
At no point did we ever leave Runway XA/XX or announce that we were leaving said runway, so there shouldn’t have been any confusion.
I don’t entirely know what we could do differently. Our plane had clear possession over the runway and the crop duster should have gone around and waited for us to complete our back taxi prior to landing.
We could have politely asked the crop duster, after noticing that it wasn’t aborting its approach to the runway we were actively on, to go-around until we finished our back taxi.
We also could’ve assumed the unpredictability of crop dusters and elected to exit the runway onto the grass strip, then held short until the crop duster had landed and left the runway.
Either way, we were within our rights to commence back taxi after landing and for the crop duster to blatantly ignore that is unsafe and represents several hazardous attitudes.
Primary Problem: Human Factors
ACN: 2140928
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“Well within our rights “ is the preamble for disaster. Just get off the runway let him land and do his job.It’s not a matter of who was right to NTSB.
A dillydallying pilot on the runway and another pilot who apparently doesn’t mind landing in an unusual way. The perfect storm of two polar opposites being at the same place at the same time. They were both lucky. The lesson to be taken – be considerate and don’t push your luck.
I’m not quite sure so I’m going to ask my part 135 friend who has 40,000 hours. I’m thinking that the aircraft on the ground has right of way over landing aircraft unless arrangements have been made for the aircraft to exit the runway and announce “ALL CLEAR”. Although I have landed at busy towered airports where I was cleared to land before an airplane has cleared the runway…..My friend says that “not safe and AG aircraft should not have landed”. I have also seen AG aircraft dive into the downwind pull up sharply midfield and then do a Hammerhead into a short approach landing…..Is that safe?
Anyone’s defending the AAO pilot’s actions boggles the mind. AAO clearly had a radio, yet didn’t use it properly. After announcing his intention for go-around, he then “buzzed” the taxiing aircraft and landed. He announced intention then blatantly disregarded.
§ 91.113 Right-of-way rules: Except water operations.
(g) Landing. Aircraft, while on final approach to land or while landing, have the right-of-way over other aircraft in flight or operating on the surface, except that they shall not take advantage of this rule to force an aircraft off the runway surface which has already landed and is attempting to make way for an aircraft on final approach. When two or more aircraft are approaching an airport for the purpose of landing, the aircraft at the lower altitude has the right-of-way, but it shall not take advantage of this rule to cut in front of another which is on final approach to land or to overtake that aircraft.
You should have given way to the crop duster, which if you had stayed clear of runway he could have had the entire runway, landed, and been out of your way. Back taxing doesn’t give you priority. You obviously angered the crop duster when you stated you were going to resume your back taxi after causing him to go-around (no fault on you) the first time.
Knowing that there is an AG plane in the pattern coming in for a landing you could have waited or expedited the back taxi. The plane landed behind you and probably cleared the runway and refueled by the time you got ready to go again. I’ve had planes land behind me while back taxiing. As long as there is communication between the pilots. I do t see what the big deal is.
I once was on short final when a crop duster flew directly underneath me and landed in front of me. I didn’t see him until he was ahead of me. His altitude was no more then 50 feet AGL and there was no radio communication from him. Instead of landing in his prop wash, I aborted and went around. My take away is this, if you see any crop duster equipment at the airport, assume there is one near by not communicating, flying non-standard pattern, and is very low. Thank God his plane was painted yellow. Otherwise I would not have seen him!
Not seeing the problem since you’re taxing in the opposite direction. Actually safer that a typical align up and hold.
You could have stayed on a concrete extension until he landed.