CL65 PUSHBACK CREW DID NOT HAVE NOSE GEAR PIN REMOVED PRIOR TO TKOF AT ORD.

Narrative

THE PREVIOUS NIGHT THE GND CREW REMOVED THE PINS FROM THE HOLDER AND PINNED THE GEAR AT THE GATE FOR THE OVERNIGHT. WE ARRIVED FOR THE FIRST FLT OF THE DAY. THE FO RETRIEVED THE MAIN GEAR PINS. NO GEAR PIN WAS FOUND IN THE NOSE GEAR. AND NO PIN IN THE HOLDER TO COMPLETE THE CHKLIST. I TOLD THE GND PERSONNEL TO FIND THE NOSE GEAR PIN. GND PERSON ARRIVED WITH NOSE PIN FOR HOLDER. ALL PINS WERE PRESENT AND ACCOUNTED FOR. I TOLD FO TO CHK NOSE GEAR AGAIN. SHE RPTED THAT SHE OPENED THE NOSE GEAR DOOR AND SAW A HOLE WHERE THE PIN WOULD BE. WE FINISHED THE PAPERWORK AND I ASKED THE FO IF SHE WAS 'SURE' NO PIN WAS IN THE NOSE. SHE TOLD THE GND PERSON TO BACK HER UP WITH A CHK OF THE NOSE. THE GND PERSON RPTED NO PIN IN THE NOSE. WE TOOK OFF AND RECEIVED A GEAR DISAGREEMENT MESSAGE. WE RAN THE QRH PROC AND RETURNED TO ORD. THE NOSE GEAR PIN WAS FOUND IN NOSE. I CAN ONLY SPECULATE THAT AT THE LAST MIN PERSONNEL UNFAMILIAR WITH THE NEW PINLESS PUSH PROC PINNED THE NOSE. THEY THEN WENT ON TO OTHER DUTIES. WHAT COULD BE DONE? PERHAPS MORE EDUCATION FOR THE GND PERSONNEL. I DON'T THINK THAT I COULD DO ANY MORE THAN I DID. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 534038: UPON ARR AT THE ACFT AT XA15 ON DEC/MON/01; I DID MY WALKAROUND AND PREFLT CHKS. I PULLED OUT THE 2 MAIN GEAR PINS AND BROUGHT THEM ON BOARD THE ACFT. WHEN I PUT THE MAIN GEAR PINS AWAY; I REALIZED THERE WAS A PIN MISSING (NOSE PIN). I CHKED OUTSIDE AT THE NOSE AND THERE WAS NO NOSE GEAR PIN INSIDE THE NOSE. I THEN ASKED THE ORD RAMP AGENT ABOUT THE MISSING PIN. HE DIDN'T KNOW WHERE IT WAS EITHER AND CHKED THE NOSE GEAR FOR THE PIN AS WELL. HE ALSO DID NOT SEE IT. HE BROUGHT OUT FROM OPS AN EXTRA NOSE GEAR PIN FOR US TO TAKE WITH US. I DID ONE MORE CHK OF THE NOSE GEAR FOR THE PIN AND AGAIN DIDN'T FIND IT. WE TOOK OFF AND UPON RETRACTION OF THE GEAR; WE GOT A 'GEAR DISAGREEMENT' AND THE NOSE GEAR WOULD NOT COME UP. WE RAN PROCS AND TRIED IT AGAIN TO NO AVAIL. WE RETURNED TO ORD AND THE RAMP AGENTS FOUND THE NOSE GEAR PIN IN THE NOSE WHEN WE PULLED IN TO THE GATE. BOTH THE CAPT AND MYSELF; AND THE RAMP AGENT WHO EARLIER CHKED THE NOSE GEAR PIN; WERE ALL CONFUSED. THE ONLY THING THAT WE COULD ALL THINK OF WAS THAT MAYBE ONE OF THE RAMP AGENTS PUT THE NOSE PIN IN FOR PUSHBACK (AN OP THAT ACR DOESN'T USE ANYMORE SINCE SEP/XA/01 AFTER THE WALKAROUND WAS ACCOMPLISHED; AND NO ONE KNEW TO LOOK FOR IT AFTER PUSHBACK WAS COMPLETE.