An A320 flight crew reported efforts by ramp personnel to achieve an on time departure might have been inappropriate.
Synopsis
An A320 flight crew reported efforts by ramp personnel to achieve an on time departure might have been inappropriate.
Narrative
Prior to departure I received four calls from the Pushback Driver. All four interrupted cockpit duties; i.e. briefings; setups and checklists. Only two of these calls were necessary. After the third call informing that the ramp was ready for pushback; I replied; 'Roger; standby'. It was about 5 minutes prior to departure time. Two minutes later the Driver called me and; IN VIOLATION OF SOP; asked me to release the brakes for an 'on time departure'. I firmly informed the Driver that 1) they were delaying the departure by interrupting the checklist; 2) they had been told to 'standby' and they should not call us unless there is an emergency or some very important reason; 3) we were 3 minutes from departure time. The Driver made it clear to me that the Ramp Supervisor was standing there and had ordered the Driver to ask for brake release. I know that management/supervisory people get bonuses based on their station's on-time performance. So is it OK for THEM to try to pad their paycheck by violating SOP? Not too long ago; management was threatening to TERMINATE any pilot who released the parking brake in violation of SOP because the pilot might get a few more minutes of pay. This Supervisor should be disciplined for attempting to coerce a junior employee into violating SOP and I should receive an apology in writing from his Supervisor.
Second reporter narrative
... we noticed the Station Manager walk up to the push-back crew. It was apparent to us he was encouraging the push crew to be more aggressive and insistent on getting us to release our brakes. It appears that; in his mind; on-time criteria is much more important than safety.
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Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.