Narrative:

Our plane had two deferred items: the hydraulic heat exchgr cool fan and an EICAS hydraulic reservoir qty. During the preflight duties/boarding process we noticed that a circuit breaker was pulled and not collared. Since this circuit breaker was associated with the hydraulic cooling fan; we double checked the pertinent MEL. The MEL did not say anything about pulling circuit breakers; so we called maintenance control to see if we were reading it incorrectly. They advised that the mechanics had intentionally left the circuit breaker out and we were to do the same. Since this was not part of the MEL; the captain and I felt that we needed further clarification. The captain talked with the regional chief pilot about the situation who said that this was permissible and the flight proceeded with no problems. I began thinking about what occurred that day and realized that we may have made a mistake. According to the company's flight crew manual; 'all breakers not in (closed) should be collared.' clearly the flight operated in a matter that went against this policy. Suggestions: this occurrence was a classic case of trying to get our customers to their destination on time; and failing to recognize the airline's intent to get the flight crew to deviate from the FAA approved manuals in order to protect completion factor/on-time performance. Although we took time to bring this to the attention of flight management; I'm afraid we still operated against approved policy. I've learned that no matter what the situation is; and regardless of who you have spoken with at the company; it is still the flight crew's responsibility to ensure that the aircraft is airworthy; and operated in compliance with approved manuals. Because of this event; I'm better prepared to deal with future situations and now know that it is necessary to stand your ground when you feel like something isn't quite right. I have learned that I will never be pressured by management to do anything that may fall outside the guidelines of our manual ever again; and because of this; the passengers and equipment that I fly will be even safer.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A CRJ200 flight crew operated a flight with an inappropriately un-collared open circuit breaker upon assurance by maintenance and management that doing so was appropriate. They later determined doing so was contrary to published direction in company manuals.

Narrative: Our plane had two deferred items: the HYD HEAT EXCHGR COOL FAN and an EICAS HYD RESERVOIR QTY. During the preflight duties/boarding process we noticed that a circuit breaker was pulled and NOT collared. Since this circuit breaker was associated with the hydraulic cooling fan; we double checked the pertinent MEL. The MEL did not say anything about pulling circuit breakers; so we called Maintenance Control to see if we were reading it incorrectly. They advised that the mechanics had intentionally left the circuit breaker out and we were to do the same. Since this was not part of the MEL; the Captain and I felt that we needed further clarification. The Captain talked with the Regional Chief Pilot about the situation who said that this was permissible and the flight proceeded with no problems. I began thinking about what occurred that day and realized that we may have made a mistake. According to the company's Flight Crew Manual; 'All breakers not in (closed) should be collared.' Clearly the flight operated in a matter that went against this policy. Suggestions: This occurrence was a classic case of trying to get our customers to their destination on time; and failing to recognize the airline's intent to get the flight crew to deviate from the FAA approved manuals in order to protect completion factor/on-time performance. Although we took time to bring this to the attention of flight management; I'm afraid we still operated against approved policy. I've learned that no matter what the situation is; and regardless of who you have spoken with at the company; it is still the flight crew's responsibility to ensure that the aircraft is airworthy; and operated in compliance with approved manuals. Because of this event; I'm better prepared to deal with future situations and now know that it is necessary to stand your ground when you feel like something isn't quite right. I have learned that I will never be pressured by management to do anything that may fall outside the guidelines of our manual ever again; and because of this; the passengers and equipment that I fly will be even safer.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.