A B757-200 flight crew reported their push back ramp crewman did not follow proper procedures; which...

Narrative:

Many ground crews are not following the new pushback procedures; and I can only conclude that they are not being well trained. Many crews are complaining about the inconsistency of verbiage used. Our push in tnca was a perfect example. We had completed the before start checklist and the before pushback checklist. The ground crewman called the captain and told me he was 'ready to push.' I had the first officer call apron control for push clearance; which we were given. The next communication per SOP after our clearance was received would be from the to the ground crew saying; 'brakes released; cleared to push.' ground: 'ground to flight deck; ready for pushback.' if ready to push: captain: 'brakes released; cleared to push.' ground: 'roger; cleared to push.' also flight manual warning: to prevent injury to personnel or damage to equipment; do not release the brakes until the before pushback checklist is complete and clearance has been received from the ground crew and pushback clearance has been received from ramp or ATC.on this occasion I noticed that time that the tug was not in the correct position for the tow bar to have been connected. If I had strictly gone by our new procedures; I would have met all the criteria for releasing the brakes and the airplane would have started to roll forward and possibly hurting someone. I reminded the ground personnel in tnca that procedures have changed and they need review the new sops or they may get hurt. I reviewed with the ground crewman that he should never check in with the 'ready for pushback' statement unless they are ready for the captain to release the brakes; as per new procedures. This could have been a real disaster. [Company] needs to take immediate action to train our ground personnel more effectively on this new procedure. The training so far is obviously inadequate. This is a system wide problem and both [with company employees] as well as third party push crews.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B757-200 flight crew reported their push back ramp crewman did not follow proper procedures; which could have led to a serious incident. This failure to adhere to new SOPs is reportedly a widespread problem.

Narrative: Many ground crews are not following the new pushback procedures; and I can only conclude that they are not being well trained. Many crews are complaining about the inconsistency of verbiage used. Our push in TNCA was a perfect example. We had completed the Before Start Checklist and the Before Pushback Checklist. The Ground Crewman called the Captain and told me he was 'ready to push.' I had the First Officer call Apron Control for push clearance; which we were given. The next communication per SOP after our clearance was received would be from the to the ground crew saying; 'brakes released; cleared to push.' Ground: 'ground to flight deck; ready for pushback.' If ready to push: Captain: 'brakes released; cleared to push.' Ground: 'roger; cleared to push.' Also Flight Manual WARNING: To prevent injury to personnel or damage to equipment; do not release the brakes until the Before Pushback Checklist is complete and clearance has been received from the ground crew and pushback clearance has been received from ramp or ATC.On this occasion I noticed that time that the tug was not in the correct position for the tow bar to have been connected. If I had strictly gone by our new procedures; I would have met all the criteria for releasing the brakes and the airplane would have started to roll forward and possibly hurting someone. I reminded the Ground Personnel in TNCA that procedures have changed and they need review the new SOPs or they may get hurt. I reviewed with the Ground Crewman that he should never check in with the 'Ready for Pushback' statement unless they are ready for the Captain to release the brakes; as per new procedures. This could have been a real disaster. [Company] needs to take immediate action to train our ground personnel more effectively on this new procedure. The training so far is obviously inadequate. This is a system wide problem and both [with company employees] as well as third party push crews.

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.

Attributes
ACN	986066
Time
Date	201112
Local Time Of Day	0001-0600
Place
Locale Reference	TNCA.Airport
State Reference	FO
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B757-200
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Taxi
Flight Plan	IFR
Person 1
Function	Captain Pilot Not Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 180 Flight Crew Total 22500 Flight Crew Type 10500
Person 2
Function	Pilot Flying First Officer
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 230 Flight Crew Total 12000 Flight Crew Type 5000
Events
Anomaly	Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy

A B757-200 flight crew reported their push back ramp crewman did not follow proper procedures; which could have led to a serious incident. This failure to adhere to new sops is reportedly a widespread problem.