"Mxsmanic" wrote in message
What does it mean when the crew of an aircraft look for "the pin" held by
the
ground crew after pushback?

The gear pins mentioned by others here are usually removed by pilots or
mechanics well before pushback for flight. The pin that the pushback crew
holds up is the steering by-pass pin. Without the pin in place, the towbar
is free to swing with the nose wheel steering and could cause serious injury
to persons and equipment. The pin is held up for the pilots to see so that
the pilots know they will have steering before they start taxiing.
Additionally, at my airline and at United, the nosewheel steering is turned
off in the cockpit because the steering may swing momentarily during
electrical power transfer as the engine-driven generators come online.

D.