Narrative:

Reported to gate early; aircraft slightly late; met the rest of the crew at gate. Aircraft arrived; passengers deplaned and crew swap; normal predeparture actions and activities. While waiting in line to depart; a flight in the line behind us advised us that the left outboard gear door strut was disconnected and dangling. We advised the tower that we needed to return to the gate and contacted operations and maintenance. Mechanics met the aircraft. Pilots completed the parking check list and the captain (me) proceeded directly down to the left main landing gear area. The mechanics had already re-secured the outer gear door by the time I arrived. I asked for a description of what they had found. They advised that they had found the securing bolt and nut installed in the strut mounting bracket but the strut itself was in a disconnected position. They explained that when a tire or brake change is made the door strut is disconnected and the strut is normally forced between the set of springs mounted on the outside of the main gear strut to keep the door up and out of the way during tire or brake changes. When that is complete the strut is re-secured to the main gear using the large bolt and nut which was temporarily left installed in the bracket. Hence; all the parts were present but not assembled together. This condition was not observed by the first officer during his walk around. The mechanics observed that if the strut was in the position of being forced between the springs; it would be difficult to see because the angle of repose of the door is nearly the same as when properly attached. The logbook write up I made was cleared by maintenance. The door was not damaged and the aircraft was returned to service. We had not requested any maintenance prior to departure. A full review of all logbooks on the aircraft at that time did not show any work being done on tires or brakes. The flight crew does not know 'why' or 'when' the attaching bolt was removed from the bracket. I (the captain) am grateful to the flight crew who brought the condition to our attention. Note-- there are no cockpit indications of this condition. If the flight had departed the door would likely have been damaged; or worse.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: B717 Captain was informed while waiting for takeoff that a gear door strut was disconnected and dangling; by another crew directly behind. Maintenance found the strut intentionally disconnected but there was no log history of any work on the door or wheel.

Narrative: Reported to gate early; aircraft slightly late; met the rest of the crew at gate. Aircraft arrived; passengers deplaned and crew swap; normal predeparture actions and activities. While waiting in line to depart; a Flight in the line behind us advised us that the left outboard gear door strut was disconnected and dangling. We advised the Tower that we needed to return to the gate and contacted Operations and Maintenance. Mechanics met the aircraft. Pilots completed the parking check list and the Captain (me) proceeded directly down to the left main landing gear area. The mechanics had already re-secured the outer gear door by the time I arrived. I asked for a description of what they had found. They advised that they had found the securing bolt and nut installed in the strut mounting bracket but the strut itself was in a disconnected position. They explained that when a tire or brake change is made the door strut is disconnected and the strut is normally forced between the set of springs mounted on the outside of the main gear strut to keep the door up and out of the way during tire or brake changes. When that is complete the strut is re-secured to the main gear using the large bolt and nut which was temporarily left installed in the bracket. Hence; all the parts were present but not assembled together. This condition was not observed by the First Officer during his walk around. The mechanics observed that if the strut was in the position of being forced between the springs; it would be difficult to see because the angle of repose of the door is nearly the same as when properly attached. The logbook write up I made was cleared by maintenance. The door was not damaged and the aircraft was returned to service. We had not requested any maintenance prior to departure. A full review of all logbooks on the aircraft at that time did not show any work being done on tires or brakes. The flight crew does not know 'why' or 'when' the attaching bolt was removed from the bracket. I (the captain) am grateful to the Flight Crew who brought the condition to our attention. Note-- There are NO cockpit indications of this condition. If the flight had departed the door would likely have been damaged; or worse.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.