Union Leaders In Norfolk Up In Arms
It was, sadly, her own fault. That's
the gist of a finding by the NTSB in the death of a Northwest
Airlines ramp worker at Norfolk International Airport -- and it's a
ruling that has the machinists union up in arms.
Denise Bogucki was operating a tug at the airport on the night
of September 12th, 2003. She was assigned to push a Northwest
Airlines DC-9 from the gate onto the ramp as Flight 1569 prepared
for take-off. Instead of hitching to the departing aircraft, the
tug impacted the plane's nose section and Bogucki was trapped
between the aircraft and the tug itself. Her injuries were
fatal.
In its finding of probable cause, the NTSB wrote:
According to a Federal Aviation Administration inspector who
examined the accident site, he observed the tug, which was going to
be used to push back the airplane, had an open-air cab at the front
of the chassis. The tug came to rest about 4 feet under the nose of
the airplane. A gash was noted on the front left base the tug,
which extended from the hookup pin area, outwards. The airplane's
nose wheel assembly, along with the connected towbar, was rotated
to the right at an approximate 45-degree angle. When the airplane's
nose wheel assembly, along with the connected towbar, was rotated
back to a forward position, the towbar cleared the nose of the
airplane by approximately 1 foot.
The inspector also noted that two types of tugs and two types of
towbars were used to push back the DC 9 series of airplanes from
the parking stands at ORF. The tug that had a cab at the rear of
the chassis, utilized a short tow bar, and the tug that had a cab
at the front of the chassis, utilized a long tow bar.
The NTSB found the probable cause of
the accident was, "the tug operator's decision to use improper
equipment for pushback procedures."
But the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace
Workers Air Transport District 143's safety and health director
says the report was based on faulty information.
"She had no choice to make," Bob Bennek told the Virginia Pilot.
He said Bogucki was operating the only tug with the only towbar
Northwest had available for that particular duty.
"This is the worst publication I've ever seen the NTSB put out,"
Bennek said. "They're misstating the facts… I don't get it.
It very much upsets me."
Last March, the Virginia Occupational Safety and Health
Administration fined Northwest $6,300 for what it called a
"serious" violation of workplace safety laws. The maximum fine
under state law in that circumstance was reportedly $7,000. The
citation dinged NWA for failing to provide a workplace "free from
recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or
serious physical harm." Employees, said the state agency, "were
exposed to crushing hazards while conducting aircraft pushback
operations."
Northwest ramp workers had complained even before Bogucki's
death that financial cutbacks had compromised safety. She was
working alone on a job that many airlines require two people to
perform together.
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