Narrative:

We pushed back from the gate. After taxi out and after being instructed to hold short of the active runway; I set the parking brake. The parking brake failed. We returned to the gate. The aircraft was chocked and passengers deplaned. Dispatch informed me that I was going to ferry the aircraft to a maintenance base. After discussing this with another captain who was my acting first officer; we decided not to ferry the flight. I have had hydraulic failure and have many computer related issues while flying these aircraft. The other pilot conveyed to me an incident that happened in the last year where he lost brakes and thrust reversers. Our combined experience with these aircraft dictated that since the parking brake is the only mechanical means of stopping the aircraft it would be unsafe to ferry it. I informed dispatch of our decision and was told to call the chief pilot. The chief pilot showed no interest in safety or in our reasons for declining the ferry flight. He expressed his concern of getting the aircraft to a maintenance facility; lack of crews; and made reference to a recent grievance that I had filed saying 'it's always something with you - ya know?' he exerted every pressure he could muster to get me to fly the aircraft. There were underlying threats of loss of employment; questioning my competence as a pilot; and asking me the odds of a hydraulic failure. He repeatedly said 'we do this stuff all the time' and that he would fly it. Only after mentioning that I was feeling a great deal of pressure from him to fly an aircraft that I considered to be unsafe; and that I was going to file a report; did his relentless banter stop. I suggest we make safety a priority at this company.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: An ERJ170 Captain reported his aircraft's parking brake failed during taxi for takeoff so he returned to the gate. He refused to fly the aircraft to a maintenance base even while his Chief Pilot exerted pressure and insults.

Narrative: We pushed back from the gate. After taxi out and after being instructed to hold short of the active runway; I set the parking brake. The parking brake failed. We returned to the gate. The aircraft was chocked and passengers deplaned. Dispatch informed me that I was going to ferry the aircraft to a maintenance base. After discussing this with another Captain who was my acting First Officer; we decided not to ferry the flight. I have had hydraulic failure and have many computer related issues while flying these aircraft. The other pilot conveyed to me an incident that happened in the last year where he lost brakes and thrust reversers. Our combined experience with these aircraft dictated that since the parking brake is the only mechanical means of stopping the aircraft it would be unsafe to ferry it. I informed Dispatch of our decision and was told to call the Chief Pilot. The Chief Pilot showed no interest in safety or in our reasons for declining the ferry flight. He expressed his concern of getting the aircraft to a maintenance facility; lack of crews; and made reference to a recent grievance that I had filed saying 'It's always something with you - ya know?' He exerted every pressure he could muster to get me to fly the aircraft. There were underlying threats of loss of employment; questioning my competence as a pilot; and asking me the odds of a hydraulic failure. He repeatedly said 'We do this stuff all the time' and that he would fly it. Only after mentioning that I was feeling a great deal of pressure from him to fly an aircraft that I considered to be unsafe; and that I was going to file a report; did his relentless banter stop. I suggest we make safety a priority at this company.

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.