Narrative:

I was taxiing southwest on Y from FBO to runway 4R and was having difficulty taxiing because my taxi light was inoperative and my landing light was aimed so high that it was useless for taxiing. I was slowly following the yellow line which was difficult because it was extremely faded. I stopped at the hold short lines for runway 4R on sierra and there were no taxi lights at the north side of sierra at the intersection of runway 4R. I was given a takeoff clearance and followed the yellow line onto what I thought to be the runway 4R centerline and centerline lights. On the takeoff roll I heard an explosion from the right side of the airplane and immediately aborted the takeoff. My first thought was that the cabin door had come open, but I checked it and it was secure. I told tower that I was aborting because I had hit something. Before I had a chance to turn around I heard a few more explosions. When asked by the tower what my intentions were, I responded that I would like to taxi back for another takeoff. I thought that the sounds that I was hearing were the right main tire running over the centerline lights, then I remembered from landing on runway 22L 4 1/2 hours earlier that this runway has no centerline lights and that I was running over the runway lights on the right side of the runway with the right landing gear. I made an immediate left turn and on taxiing back to runway 4R, I checked the right brake and determined that the brake was normal and that the tire had not blown because the plane was not veering to the right. I did not shut down and inspect the airplane for damage because I felt that everything appeared to be normal and because it was very late and I did not want to cause my passenger any further alarm or delay. The flight to cincinnati was uneventful and after my passenger left I inspected the plane for damage and found much to my surprise that it was the right propeller and not the gear that had destroyed the runway lights. Both tips on the right propeller had severe nicks and cuts in them. They were beyond the point of being repaired with a file. The propeller did not vibrate at all in flight. My suggestions as to how to prevent a recurrence of this incident are to not dispatch an aircraft with an inoperative taxi light unless the landing light is suitable for taxiing, to have the ATIS or ground controller advise of any inoperative taxi lights, to repaint taxiway stripes with reflective paint before they get to the point where you can barely see them at night, and also to have taxiway stripes join the runway centerline instead of joining the runway side stripes such is the case on runway 4R and south at midway. Any one of these situations in itself would not have been a problem, but the 4 of them put together was an accident waiting to happen. I will not operate at night in low visibility conditions at midway until this dangerous situation is corrected.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: AIR TAXI HITS RWY LIGHTS ON TKOF ROLL. ABORTS, TAXIES BACK AND DEPARTS.

Narrative: I WAS TAXIING SW ON Y FROM FBO TO RWY 4R AND WAS HAVING DIFFICULTY TAXIING BECAUSE MY TAXI LIGHT WAS INOP AND MY LNDG LIGHT WAS AIMED SO HIGH THAT IT WAS USELESS FOR TAXIING. I WAS SLOWLY FOLLOWING THE YELLOW LINE WHICH WAS DIFFICULT BECAUSE IT WAS EXTREMELY FADED. I STOPPED AT THE HOLD SHORT LINES FOR RWY 4R ON SIERRA AND THERE WERE NO TAXI LIGHTS AT THE N SIDE OF SIERRA AT THE INTXN OF RWY 4R. I WAS GIVEN A TKOF CLRNC AND FOLLOWED THE YELLOW LINE ONTO WHAT I THOUGHT TO BE THE RWY 4R CTRLINE AND CTRLINE LIGHTS. ON THE TKOF ROLL I HEARD AN EXPLOSION FROM THE R SIDE OF THE AIRPLANE AND IMMEDIATELY ABORTED THE TKOF. MY FIRST THOUGHT WAS THAT THE CABIN DOOR HAD COME OPEN, BUT I CHKED IT AND IT WAS SECURE. I TOLD TWR THAT I WAS ABORTING BECAUSE I HAD HIT SOMETHING. BEFORE I HAD A CHANCE TO TURN AROUND I HEARD A FEW MORE EXPLOSIONS. WHEN ASKED BY THE TWR WHAT MY INTENTIONS WERE, I RESPONDED THAT I WOULD LIKE TO TAXI BACK FOR ANOTHER TKOF. I THOUGHT THAT THE SOUNDS THAT I WAS HEARING WERE THE R MAIN TIRE RUNNING OVER THE CTRLINE LIGHTS, THEN I REMEMBERED FROM LNDG ON RWY 22L 4 1/2 HRS EARLIER THAT THIS RWY HAS NO CTRLINE LIGHTS AND THAT I WAS RUNNING OVER THE RWY LIGHTS ON THE R SIDE OF THE RWY WITH THE R LNDG GEAR. I MADE AN IMMEDIATE L TURN AND ON TAXIING BACK TO RWY 4R, I CHKED THE R BRAKE AND DETERMINED THAT THE BRAKE WAS NORMAL AND THAT THE TIRE HAD NOT BLOWN BECAUSE THE PLANE WAS NOT VEERING TO THE R. I DID NOT SHUT DOWN AND INSPECT THE AIRPLANE FOR DAMAGE BECAUSE I FELT THAT EVERYTHING APPEARED TO BE NORMAL AND BECAUSE IT WAS VERY LATE AND I DID NOT WANT TO CAUSE MY PAX ANY FURTHER ALARM OR DELAY. THE FLT TO CINCINNATI WAS UNEVENTFUL AND AFTER MY PAX LEFT I INSPECTED THE PLANE FOR DAMAGE AND FOUND MUCH TO MY SURPRISE THAT IT WAS THE R PROP AND NOT THE GEAR THAT HAD DESTROYED THE RWY LIGHTS. BOTH TIPS ON THE R PROP HAD SEVERE NICKS AND CUTS IN THEM. THEY WERE BEYOND THE POINT OF BEING REPAIRED WITH A FILE. THE PROP DID NOT VIBRATE AT ALL IN FLT. MY SUGGESTIONS AS TO HOW TO PREVENT A RECURRENCE OF THIS INCIDENT ARE TO NOT DISPATCH AN ACFT WITH AN INOP TAXI LIGHT UNLESS THE LNDG LIGHT IS SUITABLE FOR TAXIING, TO HAVE THE ATIS OR GND CTLR ADVISE OF ANY INOP TAXI LIGHTS, TO REPAINT TAXIWAY STRIPES WITH REFLECTIVE PAINT BEFORE THEY GET TO THE POINT WHERE YOU CAN BARELY SEE THEM AT NIGHT, AND ALSO TO HAVE TAXIWAY STRIPES JOIN THE RWY CTRLINE INSTEAD OF JOINING THE RWY SIDE STRIPES SUCH IS THE CASE ON RWY 4R AND S AT MIDWAY. ANY ONE OF THESE SITUATIONS IN ITSELF WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN A PROBLEM, BUT THE 4 OF THEM PUT TOGETHER WAS AN ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN. I WILL NOT OPERATE AT NIGHT IN LOW VISIBILITY CONDITIONS AT MIDWAY UNTIL THIS DANGEROUS SITUATION IS CORRECTED.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.