B737-800
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP); Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Multiengine
Communication Breakdown
Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Maintenance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural MEL / CDL
General Flight Cancelled / Delayed; General Maintenance Action
Manuals; MEL; Logbook Entry; Aircraft; Human Factors
My First Officer and I arrived at the jet we were to ferry with no real information as to what ailed it. Once local techs arrived; I learned another crew had attempted the ferry earlier in the day. The apparent issue with the jet was a lingering aroma of vomit. My First Officer and I confirmed this but believed the smell wasn't overwhelming. That previous crew; as well; requested the lav vacuum motors be pulled and collared. That presented a problem. There was no MEL reference in the AML regarding these entries. To my knowledge at that moment; I was looking at nearly 3 hours in the jet with no bathroom. I shared this concern with Dispatch. He agreed this was a problem. Shortly after; I received a call from 737 Tech. The gentleman was only there to relay information he received from a previous tech. He referenced an MEL for me that indicated the lavs could be used above 16;000 feet. So we'll have lavs; but why don't I have that reference in the AML? Again; passing along information; he said word is the EA covered the lack of an MEL reference. We ended that call. I checked the FOM and it seemed to indicate that was correct.Now to the EA. It indicated the flight crew requested the lav motors be disabled and an EA be issued for this maintenance ferry flight. The thing is; when I sign the flight plan; I believe I am signing the totality of the documents. And I was not the flight crew who requested the maintenance action or the EA. Soon after; I received a call back from the Technician with whom I had spoken earlier and he asked if I had called [name]; yet. No. I didn't know a [name]. The Technician gave me his number; so I called. He answered. I told him I had been asked by Technician to call; but wasn't sure why.[Name] was apparently the Mechanic On Duty that evening. He wanted to know why I was having problems getting underway. I explained the problem I was having with paperwork. In particular I was still leery of the AML; I was hoping to understand why the previous crew requested Maintenance on the lavs before they left (I had no doubt they must've had a good reason); plus I didn't feel as if I could sign the flight plan because the EA wasn't reflective of my actions; it was reflective of another crews actions. [Name] explained that we ferry airplanes all the time and I needed to understand he knew what he was doing. Further; he offered to get a Fleet Captain on the phone to help explain that to me. I shared with him that wouldn't be necessary. He asked what I needed in order to get going. I suggested he correct the EA; if that was possible; to reflect I wasn't responsible for requesting maintenance on the lavs. I also asked him what benefit that maintenance action offered. Regarding the previous crews maintenance request on the lavs; flight crews; he told me; make mistakes in the AML all the time. That was pretty much it for me. I told him that telling me about mistakes; in his opinion; flight crews made routinely with the AML wasn't a particularly great way to promote good will. He started to say something else. I said good bye and ended the call.During all this time; the local maintenance team was doing their level best to support us. As well; my Dispatcher was nothing short of extremely helpful. So; I give Dispatch a call to ask where we go from here. Unfortunately; the way forward was a three-way with [name]; Dispatch and me. [Name] agreed to change the EA; send it and then the spotting message; Dispatch would unlock the flight plan; we'd get fuel and be underway.Taxiing away; we couldn't get a closeout. That took a call to Loads who was still waiting on maintenance to unlock something or other. A few moments later; we had a closeout. Further along in the taxi; Tower said we needed to call company. We called Operations. They needed info on catering carts. Finally; number one for take-off; Tower called again to let us know company had called to say we couldn't leave. We received taxi instructions down the runway and clear; where I could call dispatch. Dispatch had been receiving calls from Mechanic On Duty first saying we couldn't go; then we could; and now; finally; we needed to return to the maintenance ramp because our paperwork wasn't correct. We taxied back. Local Maintenance came on board; asked for the AML; at which point; over the phone; [name] advised the local maintenance manager that an MEL reference needed to be added to each Logbook Deferral Sheet in the AML - the same MEL reference I had been previously told was covered instead by the EA. Huh. Go figure. You know; it seems that if we really do this all the time; we really ought to know what we're doing. I certainly don't need a bully trying to convince me to do something about which we clearly aren't so good at after all.I remain disgusted by the bullying I received. It is my responsibility to sign federal documents attesting to the legal nature of each flight. Clearly; we have a lot to learn about ferry permits. As well; our FOM needs to more clearly assist flight crews with regards to these unusual situations. Obviously; our Mechanics on Duty - at least this Mechanic - do not have our back. This guy was more concerned with moving metal than he was about moving metal safely and legally. Honestly; should he be in charge of a maintenance ferry I'm assigned to work in the future; I expect I'll walk away from the flight long before we start engines.
B737 Captain reported that logbook issues and a lack of consensus caused a lengthy flight delay.