Narrative:

One of my duties as a lead dispatcher is to update the MEL database in operations control. Each morning maintenance is supposed to send dispatch a list of the MEL items that were cleared overnight. This happens about 50% of the time. And when they do send the list; the accuracy of it is highly questionable. The other day; for example; I received the list which among other things showed an FMS deferral and not CAT ii qualified cleared from two different aircraft. As it turned out; both of these items were in fact still deferred. After I discovered another error; I simply discarded the list. The communication between maintenance control and dispatch is obviously flawed. We've seen instances of this time and time again. The MEL database is wrong and it will be wrong tomorrow and every day after until something is done to correct this problem. The solution that makes the most sense is the integration of maintenance tracking and operations control; something that was promised to both groups over three years ago. A much more painful solution--and one that is riddled with the potential for more error--is to have the overnight dispatcher audit the MEL database for the entire fleet. This would have to be done in cooperation with maintenance control; and obviously we can't always trust the info they give to dispatch. Or we could just do nothing. Clear another CAT Y deferral and send a flight into a ¼ SM approach situation; or how about clearing an icing deferral and plowing through several layers of clear and rime icing. Nothing bad could possibly happen from those situations; could it?

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: An Air Carrier dispatcher relates his frustration with inaccurate fleet MEL status provided by Maintenance.

Narrative: One of my duties as a lead Dispatcher is to update the MEL database in Operations Control. Each morning Maintenance is supposed to send Dispatch a list of the MEL items that were cleared overnight. This happens about 50% of the time. And when they do send the list; the accuracy of it is highly questionable. The other day; for example; I received the list which among other things showed an FMS deferral and not CAT II qualified cleared from two different aircraft. As it turned out; both of these items were in fact still deferred. After I discovered another error; I simply discarded the list. The communication between Maintenance Control and Dispatch is obviously flawed. We've seen instances of this time and time again. The MEL database is wrong and it will be wrong tomorrow and every day after until something is done to correct this problem. The solution that makes the most sense is the integration of Maintenance Tracking and Operations Control; something that was promised to both groups over three years ago. A much more painful solution--and one that is riddled with the potential for more error--is to have the Overnight Dispatcher audit the MEL database for the entire fleet. This would have to be done in cooperation with Maintenance Control; and obviously we can't always trust the info they give to Dispatch. Or we could just do nothing. Clear another CAT Y deferral and send a flight into a ¼ SM approach situation; or how about clearing an icing deferral and plowing through several layers of clear and rime icing. Nothing bad could possibly happen from those situations; could it?

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.