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|
Attributes | |
ACN | 1669248 |
Time | |
Date | 201907 |
Place | |
Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
State Reference | US |
Aircraft 1 | |
Make Model Name | Commercial Fixed Wing |
Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
Flight Plan | IFR |
Component | |
Aircraft Component | Normal Brake System |
Person 1 | |
Function | Vehicle Driver Ramp |
Events | |
Anomaly | Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Ground Event / Encounter Other / Unknown |
Narrative:
It has been a concern of mine that we may not be towing aircraft in the safest possible way in ZZZ. Having a tow team background; I understand the importance of safety being the top priority during aircraft repositioning. It is my understanding that every regional carrier has developed a towing checklist for each aircraft type in their fleet; and has certain rules for towing their aircraft (towing dead or powered). In ZZZ; it seems that our only procedure is to tow all regional aircraft without power; which is fine as long as the brake pressure is checked correctly and it is not going against the regional companies regulations. A couple examples that I am concerned about are the CRJ200/700 aircraft does not store brake pressure; so the only pressure you have is what is in the brake lines. On a normal tow; you may have one or two stops before the pressure is depleted. If the aircraft has been sitting for a while; you may not have any pressure at all to stop the aircraft in case of emergency. I did manage to find an E170/175 checklist; and it is very useful for checking brake pressure; however; for towing aircraft without power; the very first line (in bright red letters) states aircraft to be moved 300 yards; or less. My concern with this is that many of our tows are well over 300 yards; and we are the only airline in ZZZ towing any aircraft without power. On the tow team; we did not enter any flight deck without a proper checklist; for our safety and the safety of the aircraft. My main objective is to get every employee that tows aircraft a copy of each checklist; along with each regional carriers' regulations for towing that aircraft.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: Air carrier ground employee reported concern that the team is towing aircraft using incorrect procedures.
Narrative: It has been a concern of mine that we may not be towing aircraft in the safest possible way in ZZZ. Having a tow team background; I understand the importance of safety being the top priority during aircraft repositioning. It is my understanding that every regional carrier has developed a towing checklist for each aircraft type in their fleet; and has certain rules for towing their aircraft (towing dead or powered). In ZZZ; it seems that our only procedure is to tow all regional aircraft without power; which is fine as long as the brake pressure is checked correctly and it is not going against the regional companies regulations. A couple examples that I am concerned about are the CRJ200/700 aircraft does not store brake pressure; so the only pressure you have is what is in the brake lines. On a normal tow; you may have one or two stops before the pressure is depleted. If the aircraft has been sitting for a while; you may not have any pressure at all to stop the aircraft in case of emergency. I did manage to find an E170/175 checklist; and it is very useful for checking brake pressure; however; for towing aircraft without power; the very first line (in bright red letters) states aircraft to be moved 300 yards; or less. My concern with this is that many of our tows are well over 300 yards; and we are the only airline in ZZZ towing any aircraft without power. On the tow team; we did not enter any flight deck without a proper checklist; for our safety and the safety of the aircraft. My main objective is to get every employee that tows aircraft a copy of each checklist; along with each regional carriers' regulations for towing that aircraft.
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.