Narrative:

During the pushback; the push crew gave us the command; 'cleared to start 1 only' and later 'cleared on 2'. This is the SOP at this airport. Every time I query about the lack of standardization; they simply tell me that's what they were taught. When the push crew asked us to set brakes I did so but the indications on the brake indicators were not normal. Pressure was low and the accumulator appeared flat (which was found to be the case). Flight deck said to the push crew; 'brakes set; pressure not normal. Stay connected to the plane'.at that point; we had to make a determination of whether the brakes would operate and determine the nature of the maintenance issue. To determine the nature of the issue; we wanted to release and reset the brakes again to verify the problem. We called down to the ground crew; and asked if he was still connected; to which he said; 'yes'. We told him we had a brake issue and wanted to test the brakes with him connected. He said he was ready; and we released the brakes; pumped them and the plane started to roll. The tug was not connected to the plane! We stopped and reset the brakes and did not strike anything. As we reset the brakes there was almost no accumulator pressure; and the brake pressure was low.the tug was re-connected; and we were towed back into the gate. The push crew was instructed to chock the aircraft and leave the tug hooked up. As we went downstairs during the maintenance cycle; we found the aircraft neither chocked or hooked up to the tug with maintenance working in the main wheel well with the door down. The aircraft was chocked shortly after.this should not be dismissed as a simple miscommunication. It was discussed with the push crew over the interphone and he stated he misinterpreted the words. Words such as: 'brake pressure not normal'; and 'stay connected; we have a brake problem'. There are times all of us don't really listen; but this time there were just too many cues. And certainly a responsibility to resolve ambiguity. I believe I could have told the push driver; 'brakes set; I just kidnapped your children and sold them to gypsies' and he would have disconnected and saluted me away normally. Clearly; someone did not hear; after multiple cues; and should not be pushing back aircraft. The supervisor was spoken with in regard to this incident; and could not determine who exactly pushed the aircraft. He understood the concerns and seriousness of the event; and said there would be some follow up. Literally; someone was asleep at the wheel today; and we are fortunate nothing bad happened; because many errors were made.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: The A320's push back crew failed to listen critically to the flight crew's transmissions regarding abnormal brake pressure and disconnected the tug despite being directed not to do so. A subsequent test of the brakes allowed the aircraft to move forward because of the lack of restraint.

Narrative: During the pushback; the push crew gave us the command; 'cleared to start 1 only' and later 'cleared on 2'. This is the SOP at this airport. Every time I query about the lack of standardization; they simply tell me that's what they were taught. When the push crew asked us to set brakes I did so but the indications on the brake indicators were not normal. Pressure was low and the accumulator appeared flat (which was found to be the case). Flight deck said to the push crew; 'Brakes set; pressure NOT normal. Stay connected to the plane'.At that point; we had to make a determination of whether the brakes would operate and determine the nature of the maintenance issue. To determine the nature of the issue; we wanted to release and reset the brakes again to verify the problem. We called down to the ground crew; and asked if he was still connected; to which he said; 'yes'. We told him we had a brake issue and wanted to test the brakes with him connected. He said he was ready; and we released the brakes; pumped them and the plane started to roll. The tug was not connected to the plane! We stopped and reset the brakes and did not strike anything. As we reset the brakes there was almost no accumulator pressure; and the brake pressure was low.The tug was re-connected; and we were towed back into the gate. The push crew was instructed to chock the aircraft and leave the tug hooked up. As we went downstairs during the maintenance cycle; we found the aircraft neither chocked or hooked up to the tug with maintenance working in the main wheel well with the door down. The aircraft was chocked shortly after.This should not be dismissed as a simple miscommunication. It was discussed with the push crew over the interphone and he stated he misinterpreted the words. Words such as: 'BRAKE PRESSURE NOT NORMAL'; and 'STAY CONNECTED; WE HAVE A BRAKE PROBLEM'. There are times all of us don't really listen; but this time there were just too many cues. And certainly a responsibility to resolve ambiguity. I believe I could have told the push driver; 'Brakes set; I just kidnapped your children and sold them to Gypsies' and he would have disconnected and saluted me away normally. Clearly; someone did not hear; after multiple cues; and should not be pushing back aircraft. The Supervisor was spoken with in regard to this incident; and could not determine who exactly pushed the aircraft. He understood the concerns and seriousness of the event; and said there would be some follow up. Literally; someone was asleep at the wheel today; and we are fortunate nothing bad happened; because many errors were made.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.