Gear Pins - Showing my total ignorance
Okay, this will probably win the award for the most ignorant (not stupid) question ever asked in the forum but here goes. (Remember, ignorance can be cured with knowledge...stupid can't be cured).
I've researched on google the purpose of gear pins and everything I've found indicates that they are used during towing and pushback for safety. If that's the case, how can they be stored on the aircraft if they are being used during pushback by the ground crew? Just trying to cure my ignorance. Thanks.
Comments
As I understand it, CajunRon, the 'pins' are inserted into the gear legs to prevent them retracting while towing / pushing / or accidentally while on stand. They are removed by ground crew prior to taxi. Failure to remove them is an occasional cause of failure to retract after take off and an early and embarrassing return to the airport.
Andrew
In the "Chuck's Guide" for the Q400 it states that the gear pins are stored in the bag with red flags BEHIND THE CO-PILOTS SEAT! and if they are stored there the landing gears will now deploy or retract normally"
But something is terribly wrong with this logic. Here's the required sequence
1) All aircraft doors must be closed and locked before push back.
2) The push back crew must use the gear pins for push back
3) The pins are to be stowed behind the copilots seat
The only way that the gear pins can be stored behind the copilots seat is for the aircraft doors to be unlocked and reopenned after push back and the ground crew to hand the pins to an aircraft crew member (steward/stewardest???...remember the pilots are in there seat preparing for taxi and takeoff). THIS DOESN"T MAKE SENSE!
What i know is, that every Aircraft has Gear Pins on board and these are mostly always part of the "first flight of day" checks. But the Gear Pins on board are not used by the ground crew, they use there own Gear Pins for Pushback. The ones on board are used when the aircraft get stowed.
So this means we "pilots" are confirming that the ground crew has removed their gear pins. I guess that can make sense. If I use the GSX pushback feature, as I recall, the ground crew does confirm to the pilot that the pins are inserted and after push back, have been removed so I guess that would make sense that the pilot has to acknowledge that via the FMS. I'll buy that.
Ok let's clear the air. I do not know much of Check's guide apart from the fact that its a well written guide to help newcomers get acclimated to the aircraft, have not had the time to delve into it, but it appears to be well written.
REAL WORLD OPS!!
The gear pins are normally are inserted by mechanics or tow teams before towing the aircraft from the gates to a remote location or in the case of mechanics to and from the hangar.
Once the aircraft has been re-positioned on the gate the pins are normally removed from and stowed in the SITU bag. The crew upon receiving the aircraft usually just have to verify that the gear pins are in the SITU bag, if they are not they simply remove the pins and store them which is very rare (of course this may be different for some carriers depending on their SOP).
PUSHBACK
I don't ever recall the gear pins being inserted during a push back event unless there is a problem with the hydraulic system or the landing gear.
The pushback is conducted with the gear pins "un-installed and stowed" in the SITU bag.
MJC Q400 LOGIC
The gear pins are normally stowed if the aircraft is loaded during the day as it is presumed that the aircraft is on the line and operating. Early morning ops will very likely see the gear pins installed as we emulate the aircraft having come from a maintenance hangar for over-night checks or repairs. However, there may be times that the logic will have the pins installed randomly.
Mechanics use a "private pin" during pushback, and show the pin to pilots after the pushback, meanwhile "3 aircraft pins" stored on cockpit.