Narrative:

Prior to flight crew arriving at aircraft; maintenance (my partner and I) had removed 4 inches of snow accumulation that occurred during a 3 day layover. Upon flight crew arrival at aircraft; as I was placing a new airworthiness release documents (ard) onboard; as it was delayed due to the lav being emptied for the cold weather layover; and we had to wait for the vendor to service it. I asked the captain what he wanted for de-icing; and was told he would like both type 1 and type 4; as ATIS was reporting freezing fog. I verified the 2 step de-ice and said we would spray him as soon as the ramp was off the aircraft and his entry door closed. As I was talking with the captain; my partner was having a similar conversation with the first officer that we had removed all snow from aircraft and would spray a final de-ice prior to pushback. Here in ZZZ; all other flight crews I have dealt with prior have configured the aircraft accordingly upon door closure; and de-ice procedures commence.as the ramp personnel were moving the crew stairs off the aircraft for pushback; my partner and I came around the front of the aircraft to begin the de-ice procedure; starting with the left wing and working counterclockwise from there. As we neared the tip of the left wing; the flight crew turned on the aircraft beacon; as approval for beacon on had been given. We finished the left wing and continued on to the left horizontal stabilizer. Approximately 6 minutes from beacon on; we began spraying the right horizontal stabilizer and elevator; paying particular attention to the APU inlet; as I did not want to cause any damage to the APU. Apparently at that time the crew angrily contacted ZZZ ops and informed them that they were experiencing odors in the flight compartment due to the de-ice procedure; and ops ran out to let us know. By this time we were finishing up the final de-icing on the right wing. We parked the deice truck upon completion and got into the pushback tug to push out the aircraft. Establishing communication with the flight crew I gave all the pertinent information on the completed de-ice procedure and was informed by the captain that they had not configured their bleeds for deicing as they were never told deicing had begun. He informed me that he would be filling out a report; as they had odors in the flight deck from deicing. The crew then called the tower for clearance and we dispatched the aircraft. In a culture and industry where time is of the essence; all involved tend to assume that every procedure has been complied with. I'm sure as well that safety is at the front of everyone's mind.that being said; I could have delayed de-icing and verified with the flight crew that they were prepared for de-icing through the headset and aircraft intercom system; as we do not have VHF communications in the de-ice trucks. On the same note; the flight crew having been given approval for the beacon; and over 5 minutes of time passing without any communication; should have realized that de-icing had begun; and configured accordingly. We de-ice in gate; we do not have a coordinator designated for communications as we don't have the manpower as the larger stations do. And ops is actively involved in other aspects of their duties and stretched thin as well.in the future; ops could inform of de-icing start. The de-ice team could connect a headset to the aircraft and inform the flight crew. From now going forward; I will establish communication and verify understanding by the flight crew prior to de-ice procedures; regardless of delays; to ensure an event like this no longer happens here in ZZZ.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Maintenance and the Captain of a B767-300 reported they did not communicate while deicing the aircraft.

Narrative: Prior to flight crew arriving at aircraft; Maintenance (my partner and I) had removed 4 inches of snow accumulation that occurred during a 3 day layover. Upon flight crew arrival at aircraft; as I was placing a new Airworthiness Release Documents (ARD) onboard; as it was delayed due to the lav being emptied for the cold weather layover; and we had to wait for the vendor to service it. I asked the Captain what he wanted for de-icing; and was told he would like both type 1 and type 4; as ATIS was reporting freezing fog. I verified the 2 step de-ice and said we would spray him as soon as the ramp was off the aircraft and his entry door closed. As I was talking with the Captain; my partner was having a similar conversation with the First Officer that we had removed all snow from aircraft and would spray a final de-ice prior to pushback. Here in ZZZ; all other flight crews I have dealt with prior have configured the aircraft accordingly upon door closure; and de-ice procedures commence.As the ramp personnel were moving the crew stairs off the aircraft for pushback; my partner and I came around the front of the aircraft to begin the de-ice procedure; starting with the left wing and working counterclockwise from there. As we neared the tip of the left wing; the flight crew turned on the aircraft beacon; as approval for beacon on had been given. We finished the left wing and continued on to the left horizontal stabilizer. Approximately 6 minutes from beacon on; we began spraying the right horizontal stabilizer and elevator; paying particular attention to the APU inlet; as I did not want to cause any damage to the APU. Apparently at that time the crew angrily contacted ZZZ Ops and informed them that they were experiencing odors in the flight compartment due to the de-ice procedure; and Ops ran out to let us know. By this time we were finishing up the final de-icing on the right wing. We parked the deice truck upon completion and got into the pushback tug to push out the aircraft. Establishing communication with the flight crew I gave all the pertinent information on the completed de-ice procedure and was informed by the Captain that they had not configured their bleeds for deicing as they were never told deicing had begun. He informed me that he would be filling out a report; as they had odors in the flight deck from deicing. The crew then called the tower for clearance and we dispatched the aircraft. In a culture and industry where time is of the essence; all involved tend to assume that every procedure has been complied with. I'm sure as well that safety is at the front of everyone's mind.That being said; I could have delayed de-icing and verified with the flight crew that they were prepared for de-icing through the headset and aircraft intercom system; as we do not have VHF communications in the de-ice trucks. On the same note; the flight crew having been given approval for the beacon; and over 5 minutes of time passing without any communication; should have realized that de-icing had begun; and configured accordingly. We de-ice in gate; we do not have a coordinator designated for communications as we don't have the manpower as the larger stations do. And Ops is actively involved in other aspects of their duties and stretched thin as well.In the future; Ops could inform of de-icing start. The de-ice team could connect a headset to the aircraft and inform the flight crew. From now going forward; I will establish communication and verify understanding by the flight crew prior to de-ice procedures; regardless of delays; to ensure an event like this no longer happens here in ZZZ.

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.