A319 flight crew reported while parked at the gate awaiting pushback they were unaware they had a fluid leak from the landing gear and that a maintenance technician was underneath the aircraft working on the leak.
Synopsis
A319 flight crew reported while parked at the gate awaiting pushback they were unaware they had a fluid leak from the landing gear and that a maintenance technician was underneath the aircraft working on the leak.
Narrative
At approximately XA40L at gate XX ZZZ; ten minutes prior to pushback for flight xxx on Day 0; cockpit crew received a (status) 'STS; indication on upper ECAM screen and subsequently discovered a 'left gear'; indication on the lower ECAM status page. Cabin doors had been closed and slides had been armed. Gate Agent was awaiting ramp guidance to remove jetbridge. Crew contacted maintenance via VHF and was told that possibly?; technicians were working on a fluid leak from the landing gear; and that he would get more information and call us back. While crew awaited that call; a technician arrived on the jetway and the gate agent indicated that she would like to open door 1L. The purser disarmed the doors; the agent opened 1L and the technician boarded the aircraft.The technician requested cockpit access and was asked by the crew to explain the situation. He indicated that there had been a fluid leak in the wheel well which had been isolated and corrected. He selected the 'wheel'; systems page; energized the yellow hydraulic system electric pump; powered the yellow hydraulic system and closed the landing gear doors.As a point of safety; the cockpit was never notified of the leak nor the presence of technicians in the wheel well. No hydraulic systems were tagged out and crew was preparing for a normal pushback. Any activation of a hydraulic system at that time could have had tragic even lethal consequences. Our concerns were conveyed to the technician at the gate who seemed to care very little as well as to maintenance who seemed very concerned as well about the safety breach.The potential dangers associated with working around or within open landing gear doors that could inadvertently be closed goes without saying. The type of safety lapse that we observed today can't possibly help the Company's public image in the media and worse yet; could so easily have resulted in tragedy.
Second reporter narrative
After main cabin door closed we observed a main landing gear door status message. We inquired Maintenance and we were told that ramp observed leaking fluid in the area of our landing gear and that Maintenance personnel had our landing gear doors open and were working on fixing it. We had no communication that Maintenance was working on anything nor was our gear door broken. This could have turned into a dangerous situation in the way of possibly pressurizing the hydraulics potentially causing the gear doors to actuate while Maintenance personal were in the gear bays.
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Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.