Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Situational Awareness
Ground Event / Encounter Loss Of Aircraft Control; Ground Excursion Runway
Flight Crew Regained Aircraft Control; General Maintenance Action; General Flight Cancelled / Delayed
Weather; Human Factors; Airport
Last night after freezing rain occurred at the airport; the taxiways and runways were very slick. ATIS was reporting wet runways and slippery taxiways. We briefed the threat prior to taxiing. Taxiing to runway requires a short back taxi at the end of the runway. I taxied to the right side of the runway to the turnaround area; when I tried to make the left 180 degree turn; the aircraft did not respond to steering or brake commands. At a very slow speed; (slow walk); combined with the runway slope; the aircraft slid off the runway at about a 45 degree angle. The RH main gear and nose gear left the runway surface. The surface was frozen and hard packed; the aircraft came to a gentle stop. [We] made arrangements to have the passengers bused back to the terminal. Ops tugged the aircraft back up on to the runway surface. Taxied aircraft back to the gate; notified Maintenance and Maintenance Operations Manager.Inclement weather; freezing rain the night prior; resulting in very slippery taxiway and runway conditions. We were the first aircraft to taxi out so we had no other pilot reports of actual conditions.Runway [assigned] requires a short back taxi and a 180 degree turn; under these condition Airfield Ops needs to take more precautions to deice the turnaround and threshold portion of the runway.
I believe we took the proper measures in mitigating this risk. We briefed it; and we taxied very slowly and cautiously to avoid this type of situation. I truly believe there was nothing more we could have done in that moment to stop the aircraft from sliding off of the runway.We were not the only people involved in a traction control issue this morning. A tug driver slid 20 feet from the point he stepped on the brakes into a window (breaking the window) at the terminal; according to the Operations Manager. The Operations Manager also fell on the ramp and injured his arm after we had taxied back to the gate. In my personal opinion; I would suggest that the airport take more steps to adequately assess and deice the taxiways as well as the runways. The runway seemed to be adequately deiced; but it was obvious that the turnaround point had not been cleared from contaminants at all. The turnaround point is there for just that reason; to turn around on a back taxi. In the future; if I come across a similar situation; I would seek out more information about the taxiways before departing the ramp.
CRJ-900 flight crew reported sliding off the pavement while taxiing on an icy surface.