scope:

Over the past five years, the Air Transport Association (ATA) Ground Safety Committee (GSC) has been gathering and assessing industry-level data related to aircraft ground damage. For the purposes of this document, "aircraft ground damage" is defined as damage suffered by aircraft as a result of their being struck by, pushed or towed into vehicles, structures or other aircraft, or otherwise damaged in the course of conducting maintenance or flight preparation operations. Over time, a pattern has become evident. Four sources of aircraft ground damage consistently show up as the most common:

- Inadvertent deployment of evacuation slides and tailcones

- Passenger boarding bridge-related damage (operator error or collisions during aircraft movement)

- Damage suffered during towing and pushback operations

- Collisions between aircraft and baggage handling equipment (beltloaders, tugs and carts)

This document is intended to provide users with a set of recommended practices tailored to address the unique hazards and potential pitfalls that lead to these kinds of damage.