He should have a hi-vis safety vest on tbh. We don't open the A/C door, the FA does it and we put the safety shoe under it, once the door is open. We also hand the PCA to the FA once the door is opened - they hang it up in one of the bins in the first row of seats. Keep the cab aligned as you move toward the aircraft, stop a couple of feet before the door to assess. Use the spacer bar if required to get real close - some of the bridges at our airport are 'jumpy'. Press the auto-level once you are ready and the canopy deploys. That is when we open the cab doors and knock on the door PCA in hand. We gate agents and CSA's handle the PBB's at the airline I work for, not the ground-handler. It's kind of unusual in the industry I think.
