 |
37000 Feet | Browse and search NASA's Aviation Safety Reporting System |
|
The procedure(s) as to where to position a ground air start unit on an embraer 170 are not defined clearly. The procedures which engine to start first is also not defined.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1352685 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201604 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | EMB ERJ 170/175 ER/LR |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Parked |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Engine Air Starter |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Ramp |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Ground Event / Encounter Other / Unknown |
Narrative:
I was approached by a ramp service employee today who had a safety concern regarding air start procedures. The employee stated on a few occasions he and his crew had connected an air start to an E170 aircraft. They positioned the air start on the aircraft right (engine #2). The pilot then proceeded to start engine number 2. This scenario would cause the agent to walk very close to the running engine to disconnect the hose. They asked the captain to turn the engine off which he did.I looked through the operations manual and could not find anything indicating a specific side of the aircraft to position the pneumatic air start. I also did not find which engine is recommended to be started first. The only thing I could find stated the pneumatic air start should be positioned in a way that it is visible to the flight crew. If this is the case then it is possible the flight crew did not look to see where the pneumatic air start was poisoned or ramp crew failed to communicate with flight crew.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: The procedure(s) as to where to position a ground air start unit on an Embraer 170 are not defined clearly. The procedures which engine to start first is also not defined.
Narrative: I was approached by a Ramp Service Employee today who had a safety concern regarding air start procedures. The employee stated on a few occasions he and his crew had connected an air start to an E170 aircraft. They positioned the air start on the aircraft right (engine #2). The pilot then proceeded to start engine number 2. This scenario would cause the agent to walk very close to the running engine to disconnect the hose. They asked the captain to turn the engine off which he did.I looked through the Operations Manual and could not find anything indicating a specific side of the aircraft to position the Pneumatic air start. I also did not find which engine is recommended to be started first. The only thing I could find stated the Pneumatic air start should be positioned in a way that it is visible to the flight crew. If this is the case then it is possible the flight crew did not look to see where the pneumatic air start was poisoned or ramp crew failed to communicate with flight crew.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site 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.