Unaware the B737-800 was in flight; a maintenance technician initiated remote system reset of a sour...

Attributes
ACN	867485
Time
Date	201001
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.ARTCC
State Reference	US
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	B737-800
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Cruise
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Data Processing
Person 1
Function	Other / Unknown
Qualification	Maintenance Airframe Maintenance Powerplant
Experience	Maintenance Technician 17
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Inflight Event / Encounter Other / Unknown

Narrative:

The dispatcher advised me of a radio patch with a flight with a maintenance problem the crew wished to discuss. The flight crew informed me they had a source display fault on the number 1 deu (digital electronic unit). This is a common fault and it is our normal procedure to reset the deu to correct the fault. I gave the flight crew the reset procedure and the fault cleared. When the crew came back after the reset the captain said; 'sorry it took so long to get back we had to do a little aviating and make sure our wings were level because we lost our screens for a bit.' this was the first time I realized he was in flight. I would never reset this system in flight. The flight continued to its destination with no incident.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Unaware the B737-800 was in flight; a Maintenance Technician initiated remote system reset of a source display fault for the Number one DEU. The flight crew experienced a short term loss of their navigation and primary flight displays as result.

Narrative: The Dispatcher advised me of a radio patch with a flight with a maintenance problem the crew wished to discuss. The flight crew informed me they had a source display fault on the Number 1 DEU (Digital Electronic Unit). This is a common fault and it is our normal procedure to reset the DEU to correct the fault. I gave the flight crew the reset procedure and the fault cleared. When the crew came back after the reset the Captain said; 'sorry it took so long to get back we had to do a little aviating and make sure our wings were level because we lost our screens for a bit.' This was the first time I realized he was in flight. I would never reset this system in flight. The flight continued to its destination with no incident.

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.

Unaware the B737-800 was in flight; a maintenance technician initiated remote system reset of a source display fault for the number one deu. The flight crew experienced a short term loss of their navigation and primary flight displays as result.