Narrative:

I was preparing for a flight from hnl to anc. Maintenance towed our aircraft to the gate shortly before scheduled departure. I performed exterior preflight inspection while aircraft was still being prepared by both maintenance and other ground service personnel. Later when I was performing interior preflight inspection, a maintenance person came up and stowed a handful of flags and gearpins in the forward coat closet. In accordance with our before start checklist, I looked in the coat closet, identified 3 red gearpin flags, and subsequently completed the checklist with the first officer. Upon takeoff, when the gear was cycled, nose gear would not retract. When I looked in the coat closet and hauled out the 3 red gear pin flags, I discovered that one gear pin was missing, and not attached to its flag. We dumped approximately 77000 pounds of fuel and returned to the airport where, upon arrival at the gate, maintenance pulled the nose gear pin and brought it up to the cockpit, with the red flag missing. We refueled and departed west/O further incident. More thorough training on the part of maintenance would have prevented this problem. The person who brought the flags to the cockpit, on reflection, must have been new to the job, because he stowed the pins not in their stowage brackets in the front of the closet, but way back in the rear of the closet. Since the purpose of the red gear pin flags is to better identify the gear pins, and the gear pin flags were trailing out of the closet, that necessarily implied the presence of all 3 gear pins. Take a first aid kit, for example: I can check for the presence of the kit, but that does not imply that I am obligated to count the band-aids within. Also, had the red flag been attached to the nose gear pin, the maintenance person walking along side the nose gear during pushback would undoubtedly have seen it fluttering in the breeze, and would then have pulled it. But of course, had the flag been attached to the pin, I would have noticed the pin's absence before pushback in the first place.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: ACR WDB MADE A TKOF FROM HNL FOR AN EXTENDED OVER WATER FLT WITH THE NOSE GEAR PIN STILL INSTALLED. FUEL DUMPED. RETURN LAND.

Narrative: I WAS PREPARING FOR A FLT FROM HNL TO ANC. MAINT TOWED OUR ACFT TO THE GATE SHORTLY BEFORE SCHEDULED DEP. I PERFORMED EXTERIOR PREFLT INSPECTION WHILE ACFT WAS STILL BEING PREPARED BY BOTH MAINT AND OTHER GND SVC PERSONNEL. LATER WHEN I WAS PERFORMING INTERIOR PREFLT INSPECTION, A MAINT PERSON CAME UP AND STOWED A HANDFUL OF FLAGS AND GEARPINS IN THE FORWARD COAT CLOSET. IAW OUR BEFORE START CHKLIST, I LOOKED IN THE COAT CLOSET, IDENTIFIED 3 RED GEARPIN FLAGS, AND SUBSEQUENTLY COMPLETED THE CHKLIST WITH THE F/O. UPON TKOF, WHEN THE GEAR WAS CYCLED, NOSE GEAR WOULD NOT RETRACT. WHEN I LOOKED IN THE COAT CLOSET AND HAULED OUT THE 3 RED GEAR PIN FLAGS, I DISCOVERED THAT ONE GEAR PIN WAS MISSING, AND NOT ATTACHED TO ITS FLAG. WE DUMPED APPROX 77000 LBS OF FUEL AND RETURNED TO THE ARPT WHERE, UPON ARR AT THE GATE, MAINT PULLED THE NOSE GEAR PIN AND BROUGHT IT UP TO THE COCKPIT, WITH THE RED FLAG MISSING. WE REFUELED AND DEPARTED W/O FURTHER INCIDENT. MORE THOROUGH TRNING ON THE PART OF MAINT WOULD HAVE PREVENTED THIS PROB. THE PERSON WHO BROUGHT THE FLAGS TO THE COCKPIT, ON REFLECTION, MUST HAVE BEEN NEW TO THE JOB, BECAUSE HE STOWED THE PINS NOT IN THEIR STOWAGE BRACKETS IN THE FRONT OF THE CLOSET, BUT WAY BACK IN THE REAR OF THE CLOSET. SINCE THE PURPOSE OF THE RED GEAR PIN FLAGS IS TO BETTER IDENT THE GEAR PINS, AND THE GEAR PIN FLAGS WERE TRAILING OUT OF THE CLOSET, THAT NECESSARILY IMPLIED THE PRESENCE OF ALL 3 GEAR PINS. TAKE A FIRST AID KIT, FOR EXAMPLE: I CAN CHK FOR THE PRESENCE OF THE KIT, BUT THAT DOES NOT IMPLY THAT I AM OBLIGATED TO COUNT THE BAND-AIDS WITHIN. ALSO, HAD THE RED FLAG BEEN ATTACHED TO THE NOSE GEAR PIN, THE MAINT PERSON WALKING ALONG SIDE THE NOSE GEAR DURING PUSHBACK WOULD UNDOUBTEDLY HAVE SEEN IT FLUTTERING IN THE BREEZE, AND WOULD THEN HAVE PULLED IT. BUT OF COURSE, HAD THE FLAG BEEN ATTACHED TO THE PIN, I WOULD HAVE NOTICED THE PIN'S ABSENCE BEFORE PUSHBACK IN THE FIRST PLACE.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of August 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.