B737-800
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Ground Event / Encounter Aircraft
Aircraft Aircraft Damaged; Flight Crew Became Reoriented; General Maintenance Action; General Flight Cancelled / Delayed
Procedure
We were pushing off the gate with a tail swing behind [the adjacent] gate into the ramp area. I did not notice anything out of the ordinary during the pushback. We set brakes and started Number 2 engine. During Number 1 engine start; I was told by the ground crew to shut down engines. I inquired as to why and he said our aircraft contacted the EMB-175 aircraft on [the adjacent] gate. The pilot from that airplane ran out on the ramp and notified our push crew of this fact. I shutdown the engines and asked both Ground and Ramp for permission to tug back into our gate. We advised ramp to also have maintenance meet us at the gate.The aircraft damage to our right winglet occurred because the push crew failed to properly monitor the safe clearance of our wings from the surrounding area. The flight crew could not see anything as we were pushing backwards. The push crew needs to be trained again on the proper method to safely push an aircraft and for the wing monitors to actually look at the wings during the entire pushback.
As we started our Number 1 engine the First Officer from the aircraft on the next gate signaled to us from the ramp to hold our position then passed word through the tug driver that the airplanes had hit.
B737-800 flight crew reported their aircraft's right winglet struck an EMB-175 at the adjacent gate during pushback.