Two pilots explain why they decided to continue with their departure after realizing during taxi-out...

Attributes
ACN	1208607
Time
Date	201410
Local Time Of Day	0601-1200
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Environment
Flight Conditions	VMC
Light	Dawn
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	MD-11
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Taxi
Route In Use	Other Controlled
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Aeroplane Flight Control
Person 1
Function	Captain Pilot Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 103 Flight Crew Total 10340 Flight Crew Type 1145
Person 2
Function	Pilot Not Flying Captain
Qualification	Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy

Narrative:

Upon taxi out when the captain set the trim during the after start checklist flow; we noticed that the captain's yoke was actually a first officer's yoke with the trim; ptt and a/P disconnect located on the right side. It was obviously a mistake. We had seen the write-up for the ptt on the captain's side had been cleared with the installation of the yoke. Although this seemed unusual we believed that this must have been a legal repair. We both knew that the trim on the yoke; the ptt and the a/P disc. Are all deferrable but in this case they worked fine except they were on the wrong side of the control. It was my leg as the first officer and all the controls worked and we believed that since nothing was actually mechanically broken we were legal to depart. Guidance as to which parts are correct is not in any manuals that we are given. The yoke is not even described in the systems manual to show which yoke is the required and correct part. Have maintenance look closer at the parts before installed.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Two pilots explain why they decided to continue with their departure after realizing during taxi-out that the control yoke on the Captain's side had been replaced with a yoke for the First Officer's position. The Captain's yoke on the MD-11 aircraft was previously replaced due to an intermittent Push to Talk (PTT) switch.

Narrative: Upon taxi out when the Captain set the trim during the after start checklist flow; we noticed that the Captain's yoke was actually a First Officer's yoke with the trim; PTT and A/P disconnect located on the right side. It was obviously a mistake. We had seen the write-up for the PTT on the captain's side had been cleared with the installation of the yoke. Although this seemed unusual we believed that this must have been a legal repair. We both knew that the trim on the yoke; the PTT and the A/P disc. are all deferrable but in this case they worked fine except they were on the wrong side of the control. It was my leg as the first officer and all the controls worked and we believed that since nothing was actually mechanically broken we were legal to depart. Guidance as to which parts are correct is not in any manuals that we are given. The yoke is not even described in the systems manual to show which yoke is the required and correct part. Have Maintenance look closer at the parts before installed.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site 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.