Recurring warning for the previously deferred 'tail cone unlock alert message' caused the flight cre...

Narrative:

Left the gate with tail cone unlock alert warning deferred. The doors were verified closed by maintenance per the MEL. During takeoff at around 40 KTS we got the lvl 2 alert and master caution for the tail cone unlock and we rejected the takeoff; ran the rejected takeoff checklist; consulted with maintenance and continued the flight. Subsequent takeoff was uneventful with no warnings for the tail cone unlock.the remarks section of the MEL for this deferral says 'tail cone unlock alert may remain displayed' the alert was never displayed during start up and taxi and I expected the light would stay that way. When I saw it displayed on takeoff I reacted like I would do for any level 2 alert and master caution prior to 80 KTS. I think if the MEL would say something like 'tail cone unlock light alert may intermittently display during all phases of flight' perhaps we would have been able to process the event a lot better.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Recurring warning for the previously deferred 'Tail Cone Unlock Alert Message' caused the flight crew of an MD-11 to reject their takeoff at low airspeed.

Narrative: Left the gate with Tail Cone Unlock Alert warning deferred. The doors were verified closed by Maintenance per the MEL. During takeoff at around 40 KTS we got the LVL 2 alert and master caution for the Tail Cone unlock and we rejected the takeoff; ran the Rejected Takeoff checklist; consulted with Maintenance and continued the flight. Subsequent takeoff was uneventful with no warnings for the tail cone unlock.The remarks section of the MEL for this deferral says 'TAIL CONE UNLOCK alert may REMAIN displayed' The alert was never displayed during start up and taxi and I expected the light would stay that way. When I saw it displayed on takeoff I reacted like I would do for any Level 2 alert and Master Caution prior to 80 KTS. I think if the MEL would say something like 'TAIL CONE UNLOCK LIGHT ALERT MAY INTERMITTENTLY DISPLAY DURING ALL PHASES OF FLIGHT' perhaps we would have been able to process the event a lot better.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 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.

Attributes
ACN	1007781
Time
Date	201205
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	MD-11
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Takeoff
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Door Warning System
Person 1
Function	Pilot Not Flying Captain
Person 2
Function	Pilot Flying First Officer
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe

Recurring warning for the previously deferred 'tail cone unlock alert message' caused the flight crew of an md-11 to reject their takeoff at low airspeed.