Having spent 10 years working for a ground handling contractor after decades of other aviation "exposure" of various types, and two careers in safety focused fields I can attest that:
- Ground handling pay sucks.
- Due to the pay leadership also is sub par (including trainers) I've seen people promoted to trainer after a couple months on the job because nobody else would take it for a dollar raise...
- Mgmt regularly hides or looks away from reported safety issues when reported even when it's all on airport video. I've reported arrival walk around done with the agent texting the entire walk around never looking at the aircraft and also walking behind running engines......not a word was said publicly or privately.
- You can't expect new agents to learn when their trainer doesn't know squat outside of read this book.
- This culture fostered the I won't get fired for anything.
- When you have my management openly fabricating Records required to be retained by the Contract, that hadn't been Completed for months.... You've got a culture problem.
- When aircraft are dispatched after de/anti ice with contamination and nobody loses Thier Jobs....you've got a culture issue
- When the manager tells a supervisor to falsify deice op files.......culture issue
- When management thinks it is wise to have an entire supervisor cadre under the age of 24 with no college /military/or leadership experience (that's a whole separate colorful story)
this agent is ultimately at fault paying the ultimate price for one or more of the following. lack of knowledge, not being situationally aware, blindly doing what he/she was told to do, following local practice rather than company procedures, being rushed (by leadership or last operation of the shift: new years eve and next flight was 5 hours I believe)
The ramp is inherently unsafe as many industrial jobs are....but with professionalism, training, experience etc....they can be fatality free
It will be interesting to see where other root causes are.
Does anyone know if if AA has to a requirement for ramp markings such as aircraft envelope/safety zone, ingestion zone, etc. Google Maps seems to show no safety markings only lead in lines.
Tragic loss and very avoidable
Side note 10 years I've never worked an inop APU where the engine opposite the cargo/baggage doors wasn't the one left running (to allow for baggage to offload to start) #2 off on all wing mounted engine aircraft (mainline tail engines 717/88/90)#1 off on CRJs and ERJ145.
Recent years policies at at least two legacy carriers and thier regionals is no approach (save GPU hookup) until beacon is off (no engines running).