Narrative:

Our oceanic entry point was in center oceanic's airspace. We/or I understood that this meant our clearance received on the ground was valid for the route portion of our oceanic clearance. The flight was proceeding well. We were logged onto cpdlc (controller pilot datalink communication). When we first requested a SELCAL check with radio; the operator said; 'I have nothing on you.' this fed into later confusion as to whether or not our equipment was functioning normally. At some point approximately 45 minutes prior to oceanic entry point; I asked the captain if he wanted me to prompt ATC via cpdlc; as we hadn't received our altitude and mach number confirmation for our crossing. He said no; that ATC would contact us. I accepted this; as the captain had flown the trip recently; I had not. As we got closer to our entry point; we still had not been contacted with this information. The captain sent a 'when can we expect FL340 (filed)' request via cpdlc; and did not receive a response. The captain notified radio that we were still waiting on altitude and mach speed assignment. She told us to standby; and a few moments later; a quick garbled transmission that center wasn't responding to her either. We were concerned that we hadn't received confirmation of mach speed and altitude for crossing as the europe reference guide states we would. The captain voiced concern over being at the 'wrong altitude' in reference to potential traffic; as we were filed to cross at FL340. I was also concerned as to why we hadn't received confirmation; but stated that we needed to stay at FL330 until we were told otherwise. Essentially; the captain and I both had the same concern related to potential traffic conflicts; but differed significantly on how best to avoid said traffic. Passing the entry point; the captain indicated that he feared cpdlc failure. He disregarded my strong objection and exercised his captain's authority to initiate a climb to FL340. I continued to state my discomfort and disagreement with this decision multiple times; and immediately began a decidedly vigilant lookout for traffic. When I spotted an aircraft at FL340 on TCAS; I loudly and firmly stated it and demanded an immediate descent to FL330. The captain then recognized the threat; and agreed to reestablish and remain at FL330 until further ATC instructions dictated otherwise. We did not receive any TCAS traffic or resolution advisories; nor did I visually acquire the other aircraft. After contact with new york center was reestablished; the flight proceeded normally to destination.we did not receive a response from ATC via cpdlc when we requested climb nor confirmation of expected altitude and mach number. Communication with radio was challenging; they were slow to respond to us. This caused the captain to question our communication status; and doubt the functionality of our equipment. This situation would have been avoided with prompt communication and instructions via cpdlc. Absent that; the captain and I communicated. He simply disagreed with my assessment until it was proven correct.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: B767 flight crew and an air traffic controller reported a miscommunication that led to the flight crew deviating from an assigned crossing altitude.

Narrative: Our oceanic entry point was in Center Oceanic's airspace. We/or I understood that this meant our clearance received on the ground was valid for the route portion of our oceanic clearance. The flight was proceeding well. We were logged onto CPDLC (Controller Pilot Datalink Communication). When we first requested a SELCAL check with Radio; the operator said; 'I have nothing on you.' This fed into later confusion as to whether or not our equipment was functioning normally. At some point approximately 45 minutes prior to Oceanic Entry Point; I asked the Captain if he wanted me to prompt ATC via CPDLC; as we hadn't received our altitude and Mach number confirmation for our crossing. He said no; that ATC would contact us. I accepted this; as the Captain had flown the trip recently; I had not. As we got closer to our entry point; we still had not been contacted with this information. The Captain sent a 'When can we expect FL340 (filed)' request via CPDLC; and did not receive a response. The Captain notified Radio that we were still waiting on altitude and Mach speed assignment. She told us to standby; and a few moments later; a quick garbled transmission that Center wasn't responding to her either. We were concerned that we hadn't received confirmation of Mach speed and altitude for crossing as the Europe Reference Guide states we would. The Captain voiced concern over being at the 'wrong altitude' in reference to potential traffic; as we were filed to cross at FL340. I was also concerned as to why we hadn't received confirmation; but stated that we needed to stay at FL330 until we were told otherwise. Essentially; the Captain and I both had the same concern related to potential traffic conflicts; but differed significantly on how best to avoid said traffic. Passing the entry point; the Captain indicated that he feared CPDLC failure. He disregarded my strong objection and exercised his Captain's authority to initiate a climb to FL340. I continued to state my discomfort and disagreement with this decision multiple times; and immediately began a decidedly vigilant lookout for traffic. When I spotted an aircraft at FL340 on TCAS; I loudly and firmly stated it and demanded an immediate descent to FL330. The Captain then recognized the threat; and agreed to reestablish and remain at FL330 until further ATC instructions dictated otherwise. We did not receive any TCAS traffic or resolution advisories; nor did I visually acquire the other aircraft. After contact with New York Center was reestablished; the flight proceeded normally to destination.We did not receive a response from ATC via CPDLC when we requested climb nor confirmation of expected altitude and Mach number. Communication with Radio was challenging; they were slow to respond to us. This caused the Captain to question our communication status; and doubt the functionality of our equipment. This situation would have been avoided with prompt communication and instructions via CPDLC. Absent that; the Captain and I communicated. He simply disagreed with my assessment until it was proven correct.

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.