What happened
During the departure process for aircraft VGJ, the flight crew began their after-start procedures following a pushback from bay 4. During this period, the crew's attention was diverted by radio communications and the movement of another aircraft parked at bay 5, which presented a potential collision risk.
While managing this potential conflict, the captain misidentified a dispatcher working with the aircraft at bay 5 as the dispatcher assigned to VGJ. At the same time, the tug used for the pushback of VGJ had moved toward the terminal to avoid the nearby aircraft. Because the captain saw a dispatcher near the departing tug, they incorrectly assumed their own dispatcher had already removed the nose wheel steering pin and moved away. This led to the aircraft beginning its taxi sequence without the crew confirming that the ground crew had actually disconnected.
The investigation
The investigation focused on why the after-start checklist failed to identify that the dispatcher was still connected. It was determined that the crew's attention was split by the taxi instructions and movements of the aircraft at bay 5. The investigation found that the captain's misidentification of the ground personnel, combined with the visual association of the dispatcher with the moving tug, created a false sense of security regarding the status of the steering pin and the disconnection process.
Findings
- The flight crew's attention was diverted from their standard after-start flows by the risk of collision with an aircraft at bay 5.
- The captain misidentified the dispatcher for the aircraft at bay 5 as the dispatcher for VGJ.
- The movement of the tug toward the terminal contributed to the captain's incorrect assumption that the dispatcher had completed their tasks and moved away.