Narrative:

Upon initial climb the pressurization began swinging from +2000 fpm to -2000 fpm. The captain attempted to identify any cause for the fluctuations without success. At that point I suggested a diversion to [a nearby airport]. The captain asked the passengers where they would like to land and they selected the departure point. We requested a return to the [departure airport] and were vectored for the visual approach. Turning a normal base leg; a single engine aircraft turned a close in base to final. When we saw that he was not doing a touch and go we went around. Flew a normal traffic pattern and landed without further incident. The pressurization system was still cycling wildly. Passengers were made aware of the issues early and coordination between the captain and I was excellent.MEL allows the aircraft to be flown up to FL250. We were assigned to ferry the airplane unpressurized to the service center; a 1.5 hour flight; planned at FL250. After the issue we had; we declined the flight because by the time we got on the ground; both of us had whopping headaches.during my time in the us air force reserves; I went to the pressure chamber 3 times. I understand the physiological issues of high altitude unpressurized flight. I also understand and identify the hazards because of my training. Not all of our pilots have that training or experience. I am concerned that a crew unfamiliar with the physiological challenges of unpressurized high altitude flight will accept a ferry at FL250 and have dramatic problems which could jeopardize safety. If the MEL restricted flight to between 10;000 and 15;000 feet; those issues would be minimized and safety enhanced.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: CE-560XL First Officer reported returning to the departure airport after experiencing a malfunctioning cabin pressure control system.

Narrative: Upon initial climb the pressurization began swinging from +2000 fpm to -2000 fpm. The Captain attempted to identify any cause for the fluctuations without success. At that point I suggested a diversion to [a nearby airport]. The Captain asked the passengers where they would like to land and they selected the departure point. We requested a return to the [departure airport] and were vectored for the visual approach. Turning a normal base leg; a single engine aircraft turned a close in base to final. When we saw that he was not doing a touch and go we went around. Flew a normal traffic pattern and landed without further incident. The pressurization system was still cycling wildly. Passengers were made aware of the issues early and coordination between the Captain and I was excellent.MEL allows the aircraft to be flown up to FL250. We were assigned to ferry the airplane unpressurized to the service center; a 1.5 hour flight; planned at FL250. After the issue we had; we declined the flight because by the time we got on the ground; both of us had whopping headaches.During my time in the US Air Force Reserves; I went to the Pressure Chamber 3 times. I understand the physiological issues of high altitude unpressurized flight. I also understand and identify the hazards because of my training. Not all of our pilots have that training or experience. I am concerned that a crew unfamiliar with the physiological challenges of unpressurized high altitude flight will accept a ferry at FL250 and have dramatic problems which could jeopardize safety. If the MEL restricted flight to between 10;000 and 15;000 feet; those issues would be minimized and safety enhanced.

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.