Have you ever...?

[wheelsup]

Write it up! At least here, most minor things can be deferred over the phone/radio. For major things, you'd better be writing it up regardless of anything else.

As for the nav light question, before I was at an airline, I would've given the standard "write it up because it's the right thing to do blah blah blah" answer. Now, I'd give the "write it up, defer it over the phone, and get the hell out of Dodge!" answer.

I think the question is generally worded to the effect of both nav lights are out on the side, so you can't defer it.

 

[sopdan]

I think the question is generally worded to the effect of both nav lights are out on the side, so you can't defer it.

Well, if you were at a podunk airport and the last flight out was still during the day, then we could defer it.

Oh, and far as the FAA listening in on company frequencies, I've heard the same thing about them listening to XJ in MSP. I'd be willing to bet they just have a scanner running through all of the companies' freqs at XXX airport.

 

[wheelsup]

Well, if you were at a podunk airport and the last flight out was still during the day, then we could defer it.

Of course yet the scenario posed above is always at night.

 

[sopdan]

Of course yet the scenario posed above is always at night.

Sense of humor?

 

[jtrain609]

Get contract MX.

If you don't have contract MX, fire somebody in MX control for not doing their job and finding contract MX.

 

[sopdan]

Get contract MX.

If you don't have contract MX, fire somebody in MX control for not doing their job and finding contract MX.

Did it twice in the last two days. Bird strike and taxi light.

 

[Cptnchia]

Get contract MX.

If you don't have contract MX, fire somebody in MX control for not doing their job and finding contract MX.

Heck, even back in 1995, ASA carried spare bulbs and ignitors on the E-120 just in case. If an airline is out there flying around without spare bulbs and such, they are being very negligent to their responsibility to provide service.

 

[SpiraMirabilis]

A few months after I went online there was a change to our CFM -- previously you did first flight checks (autofeather, PTU, beta lockout, etc) on the first flight but the new change to the CFM said you should wait until you got back to the hub to do the first flight checks, the subtext being that if you did them at an outstation that you might find out it is broken before you take off.

 

[zmiller4]

A few months after I went online there was a change to our CFM -- previously you did first flight checks (autofeather, PTU, beta lockout, etc) on the first flight but the new change to the CFM said you should wait until you got back to the hub to do the first flight checks, the subtext being that if you did them at an outstation that you might find out it is broken before you take off.

And the FAA approved that?

 

[Cptnchia]

A few months after I went online there was a change to our CFM -- previously you did first flight checks (autofeather, PTU, beta lockout, etc) on the first flight but the new change to the CFM said you should wait until you got back to the hub to do the first flight checks, the subtext being that if you did them at an outstation that you might find out it is broken before you take off.

That is just so wrong! Back in my darker days, got sent to MCN to pick up a MX bird and take it back to ATL. On taxi out, we were doing the FFOD checks and could not get the left engine to feather. (They had done a left engine change.) Taxi back in and we get grief because they need the plane in service. THey didn't believe us that it wouldn't auto feather. Even showed us the sign off where they had tested it.

Long story short, after 3 hours of them beating on the engine like the group of monkeys with the obelisk in the opening shot of "2001," some bright individual finally followed the captain's advise to check the auto feather controller. They initially refused to, since they had a signed off test, so that couldn't be the problem. Lo and behold, they found all the cannon plugs unplugged, and the plastic covers still on the plugs and unit.

 

[FlyChicaga]

Every time I've been pressured NOT to write something up in an outstation, because "we don't have contract maintenance there," contract maintenance has showed up in 15 minutes or less.

The way I see it, I am not only writing it up to cover my own arse. I'm writing it up to uphold the integrity of my company, and ensure my passengers are safe. If I get grief for it, I always explain it in that way.

 

[WalterSobchak]

I'd love to see this thread in the Freight section.

I've hit a few what I thought were large "June Bugs" and wiped it clean before. There is always common sense. I was accepting a plane from another CA who didn't know how to 'pop' the annunciatior lights out and change a bulb if one of the TWO channels was burnned out. I told him I'd change it and take care of it(this is one we can change i.e. we have spares). He just called it in to MX:banghead:. The was the last leg and I had a tight commute. It delayed the flight 40 minutes because MX was swamped with real issues. He left, I changed the bulb in about .02 seconds and waited 40 minutes for a sign off. That should be on the type ride. Can you change a small light bulb????? Seriously what a DB use your brain.

 

[sopdan]

But some times those things are impossible to get out... or back in. I admit I had to write one up because it fell all the way out of the panel and I couldn't get it back in, the metal prongs had come off and retracted back into the hole. It took the mechanic 10 minutes to get it back in properly, and that was with the help of having me hold things in position for him.

Also, it seems like every single time I replace a bulb, the other bulb burns out when I test it. Maybe I should just replace both every time. It would save me some hassle.

 

[Cptnchia]

. I was accepting a plane from another CA who didn't know how to 'pop' the annunciatior lights out and change a bulb if one of the TWO channels was burnned out. I told him I'd change it and take care of it(this is one we can change i.e. we have spares). He just called it in to MX:banghead:. The was the last leg and I had a tight commute. It delayed the flight 40 minutes because MX was swamped with real issues. He left, I changed the bulb in about .02 seconds and waited 40 minutes for a sign off. That should be on the type ride. Can you change a small light bulb????? Seriously what a DB use your brain.

Depends on the carrier too. Do that at Southernjets and get caught and you get a free trip to the principal's office. Just hope you're not NYC based and have to go see Ax.

 

[Polar742]

I'd love to see this thread in the Freight section.

I've hit a few what I thought were large "June Bugs" and wiped it clean before. There is always common sense. I was accepting a plane from another CA who didn't know how to 'pop' the annunciatior lights out and change a bulb if one of the TWO channels was burnned out. I told him I'd change it and take care of it(this is one we can change i.e. we have spares). He just called it in to MX:banghead:. The was the last leg and I had a tight commute. It delayed the flight 40 minutes because MX was swamped with real issues. He left, I changed the bulb in about .02 seconds and waited 40 minutes for a sign off. That should be on the type ride. Can you change a small light bulb????? Seriously what a DB use your brain.

I know a freight company that writes up everything....including the little lights in the MCP.

Our job is to fly the plane. If you are a professional FE and have an ATP ticket, sure get on it as far as the company allows, but still, keep it in the book.

I guarantee if enough write ups are signed off as "Ops Check Normal", the local FAA will be looking into it. You may not hear about it, but it will get looked into.

 

[falconvalley]

Not now. I'm writing that stuff up, then they HAVE to come out and sign it off. Before, I might have just called them.

Maybe you have problems with maintenance at your company. Whenever I had problems, yes, I wrote the stuff up. Maybe I see both sides because I'm a mechanic too, but my take is if you don't have to use it/test it and you don't see it, you shouldn't check it unless you're willing to take a delay. I actually had a captain once start turning on every cockpit light he could at dawn and write every single burnt out light bulb he could find. It took me an hour just to defer all the lights. The mechanics are supposed to check the lights every so often. If a light burns out in between it's up to us to tell them. If we don't need the light, why turn it on? Make a phone call. Don't talk about maintenance on the radio unless it's in reference to a write up or deferal. If maintenance gives you a problem, then write it up if you feel it's necessary.

I guess the point is don't finish a trip with components that should be written up and don't give up vital information on the radio.

 

[kellwolf]

Maybe you have problems with maintenance at your company.

Often, actually.

I actually had a captain once start turning on every cockpit light he could at dawn and write every single burnt out light bulb he could find. It took me an hour just to defer all the lights.

We lamp test on FFOD. That normally catches some stuff.

The mechanics are supposed to check the lights every so often. If a light burns out in between it's up to us to tell them.

They're supposed to check taxi and landing lights over here. In the past week, I've had three planes with burned out taxi lights that weren't written up. Why? I think we're the only carrier that doesn't check those external lights on FFOD. Me? Call me a DB, but I have my FO check 'em on FFOD.

If we don't need the light, why turn it on?

I can't think of any lights on the CRJ we DON'T need. The ones that aren't normally on, you REALLY want them to work when they need to. Okay, map lights, but those are deferrable.

Make a phone call. Don't talk about maintenance on the radio unless it's in reference to a write up or deferal. If maintenance gives you a problem, then write it up if you feel it's necessary.

That's the problem at our company, though. Dispatch and MX have become so spoiled by guys that use their cel phones for everything, things come to a crashing halt if you DON'T use your cel phone. Company's not paying for my minutes, so I don't use it unless it's the absolute last resort. As a result, I normally wind up talking to MX on the radio/batphone/AIRINC b/c they ignore half my ACARS messages. I got an ACARS for MX control that said "Call us when you get on the ground." I sent them back "My battery's dead" and they sent me what I needed over ACARS. So, why did they even ask me to call them?

 

[sopdan]

That's the nice thing about our new W&B system on the Saab. I use the company provided phone for as many company related calls that I can.

Edit: I just noticed you referred to the batphone... that's what I call my company phone.

 

[falconvalley]

That's the problem at our company, though. Dispatch and MX have become so spoiled by guys that use their cel phones for everything, things come to a crashing halt if you DON'T use your cel phone. Company's not paying for my minutes, so I don't use it unless it's the absolute last resort. As a result, I normally wind up talking to MX on the radio/batphone/AIRINC b/c they ignore half my ACARS messages. I got an ACARS for MX control that said "Call us when you get on the ground." I sent them back "My battery's dead" and they sent me what I needed over ACARS. So, why did they even ask me to call them?

LOL sometimes I wonder if maintenance has a special section in their handbook that covers "making life difficult for pilots".

When I was in the Beech, we had really good cockpit lighting. You could fly around with a lot of the lights off and you wouldn't even know if they worked or not.

 

[germb747]

I had a captain who's first flight after his 30-day suspension was with me. From now on he doesn't do a damn thing with the jet until the forms are completed and in his hand. It was a very minor thing that he thought had been written up since he had asked the ride-on mechanic to write it up. Well, the FAA was on board and at some point during the flight said, "let me see, I'm curious to see how that was written up". Well, it wasn't written up. F/O got a 15-day suspension; both got letters in their file. I thought that was interesting, because at no point in any of our checklists and/or manuals does it state anything about the F/O reviewing the logbooks or forms.