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CRJ50 flight crew experiences two separate instances of nose wheel steering failure after engine start. The crew is then asked to ferry the aircraft for maintenance and they decline.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 921737 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201012 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | Regional Jet CL65 Undifferentiated or Other Model |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Taxi |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Nosewheel Steering |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | First Officer Pilot Not Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Commercial |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 240 Flight Crew Total 5500 Flight Crew Type 4300 |
| Person 2 | |
| Function | Pilot Flying Captain |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 200 Flight Crew Total 15500 Flight Crew Type 8000 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy |
Narrative:
We pushed back from our gate and when the captain engaged the nose wheel steering during the normal checklist we received the nose wheel steering inoperative caution message. We asked to be towed back to the gate. The mechanic pulled the appropriate breakers and asked the captain to test the nose wheel steering again. After three unsuccessful attempts the nose wheel steering engaged at the gate. The mechanic signed off the aircraft and we pushed off the gate again. When the captain engaged the nose wheel steering switch again during the normal checklist we received the same nose wheel steering caution message. We were towed back to the gate; the passengers were deplaned and the aircraft was towed by operations to a remote location. We later found out the scheduled flight was canceled. The captain had several phone calls with maintenance control to update the status of the aircraft. At one point the mechanic on the phone said they were organizing a 'road trip' and it was a major fix and the plane wouldn't be ready until 5 hours later. We then called scheduling to inquire about being rescheduled. We were told to report to the aircraft immediately because it was ready to be ferried. Being curious about the conflicting information we again called maintenance control and were then told the airplane was 'ops check good' and they could not duplicate the problem and wanted us to ferry the aircraft. The captain expressed his concern about operating an aircraft that had just proven to us twice that is was not airworthy without further repair. The mechanic suggested the nose wheel steering would be deferred and it was fine to fly. The captain told the mechanic he was not operating the aircraft in the current circumstance. The mechanic hung up the phone when the captain stated this. Captain asked me if I was comfortable ferrying the plane with the nose wheel steering inoperative from this field; to which I replied 'no'. Something happened behind the scenes and when we contacted scheduling again we were told to deadhead to pick up our trip.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: CRJ50 flight crew experiences two separate instances of nose wheel steering failure after engine start. The crew is then asked to ferry the aircraft for maintenance and they decline.
Narrative: We pushed back from our gate and when the Captain engaged the nose wheel steering during the normal checklist we received the nose wheel steering inoperative caution message. We asked to be towed back to the gate. The Mechanic pulled the appropriate breakers and asked the Captain to test the nose wheel steering again. After three unsuccessful attempts the nose wheel steering engaged at the gate. The Mechanic signed off the aircraft and we pushed off the gate again. When the Captain engaged the nose wheel steering switch again during the normal checklist we received the same nose wheel steering caution message. We were towed back to the gate; the passengers were deplaned and the aircraft was towed by Operations to a remote location. We later found out the scheduled flight was canceled. The Captain had several phone calls with Maintenance Control to update the status of the aircraft. At one point the Mechanic on the phone said they were organizing a 'road trip' and it was a major fix and the plane wouldn't be ready until 5 hours later. We then called Scheduling to inquire about being rescheduled. We were told to report to the aircraft immediately because it was ready to be ferried. Being curious about the conflicting information we again called Maintenance Control and were then told the airplane was 'ops check good' and they could not duplicate the problem and wanted us to ferry the aircraft. The Captain expressed his concern about operating an aircraft that had just proven to us twice that is was not airworthy without further repair. The Mechanic suggested the nose wheel steering would be deferred and it was fine to fly. The Captain told the Mechanic he was not operating the aircraft in the current circumstance. The Mechanic hung up the phone when the Captain stated this. Captain asked me if I was comfortable ferrying the plane with the nose wheel steering inoperative from this field; to which I replied 'no'. Something happened behind the scenes and when we contacted Scheduling again we were told to deadhead to pick up our trip.
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.