Originally Posted by
punkalouver
My guess……..it was not the snow that was particularly slippery. I suspect that there was smooth ice that had formed at the gate at some point, perhaps very recently. Then snow fell on top of it. Meanwhile, the taxiways were mostly snow over pavement. Therefore, minimal issues while taxiing on a route with several turns leading to a false sense of security and the assumption that the parking area was the same.
I have to admit, I thought they were turning into the gate when this happened, not on a taxiway. It still could have been smooth ice under the snow as the aircraft does appear to slide sideways at the end. Taxi speed does appear to be an issue.