B737 Undifferentiated or Other Model
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 235; Flight Crew Total 1771; Flight Crew Type 1771
Situational Awareness
Conflict Ground Conflict; Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Ground Event / Encounter Other / Unknown
Flight Crew Took Evasive Action
Human Factors
During pushback we were stopped on what appeared to me to be the appropriate point for tug disconnect. We had started the right engine and I cleared the tug driver off the headset. He pulled away and the marshaller was in the 'ready for wave-off' position. Everything was normal up to that point. I was just about to flash the taxi light and looked over to see the airplane at [the adjacent gate] pushing back beside me using a small 'super-tug' (as opposed to the normal tow-bar tug). What caught my attention was that his wing tip and winglet was actually OVERLAPPING my right wing. Ramp control was moderately busy but I broke in on the radio and asked the controller what was going on. At the same time; my FO was trying to get the wing-walker's attention. She said he looked at her and back at the wingtip a couple of times. She was waving trying to get him to tell the tug driver to stop. Finally; the wing-walker got the message and gave the crossed-wands signal to the tug driver. In the meantime; I was communicating over the radio with both ramp control and the captain of [the other aircraft]; letting him know how close his wingtip was to my airplane. I estimate that his winglet was only 15-20 feet away from my first officer's sliding window--well inside of my wingtip. At that point; had his airplane disconnected and taxied per normal procedures; I am certain that his tail would have hit my winglet; if not my fuselage; as he made the right turn to taxi. I asked the ramp controller to send a ramp supervisor over and she said that there was a supervisor involved in the situation already. Ultimately; after looking things over; they pulled the other airplane forward and to the right; disconnecting him down and inside the taxi line from where we were originally located. The airplanes were close enough that I was concerned that we might make contact as his tail swung when they turned him. My FO watched to ensure that the wing and tail would clear. Once the other aircraft was clear; we finished with our normal procedures. All the time while this was going on; the tug crew that had pushed us back appeared to be frozen in place; the marshaller still with the wands in the ready position waiting for my flash of the taxi light. I cannot believe that during that whole evolution SOMEBODY on one of the two ramp crews didn't see what was going on and say something! Not trying to make myself and my FO out to be the heroes by any means; but had it not been for me calling on the radio and her getting the wing-walker's attention; I truly believe we would have traded paint with the other flight.
B737 Captain reported that during pushback he was almost hit by the aircraft being pushed off the adjacent gate.