A321
Flight Crew Multiengine; Flight Crew Instrument; Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Total 27900
Communication Breakdown; Troubleshooting
Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural MEL / CDL; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Maintenance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
General Flight Cancelled / Delayed; General Maintenance Action
Manuals; MEL; Company Policy; Aircraft; Procedure
This was our first flight in this aircraft and it came in to us with an existing MEL for the cockpit left fuel tank ECAM indication inoperative. The left wing fuel indicator had been written up as the last two digits dashed to intermittently inoperative with an amber XX. The wing refuel indications were operational and not on the MEL. This particular A321 is one of a handful in our fleet that were delivered without wing fuel Magnetic Manual Indicators (MMI).The aircraft was meet in JFK by maintenance technicians for a GPS write-up and they said to also verify the fuel quantity due to the MEL. They related that the maintenance work order to address the fuel MEL was to replace both wing tank fuel capacity probes. They felt that if the fuel probes were the issue with cockpit left fuel tank indication then the left wing re-fuel gauge would be effected as well. Once they discovered that this aircraft had no wing MMI's they were of the opinion that there was no way to verify the left wing fuel load. This was due to the fact that both method 2 and 3 refueling procedures require the use of MMI's to verify the fuel load.I initiated a conference call with Dispatch as well as Maintenance Control for the aircraft. Maintenance Control; Dispatch; and myself had dealt with these aircraft without wing MMI's before with a fuel gauge inoperative on the MEL. In the past; if you had a fuel slip with a working wing refuel gauge; as the current MEL is written; you were good to go. The maintenance technicians were adamant that they felt this was incorrect. After they explained their position to Maintenance Control and Dispatch; we came to a joint decision that enough of a grey area existed in this instance to take the aircraft out of service until further determination could be made regarding the status of the aircraft relative to the MEL and this airplane's lack of wing MMI's to verify the wing fuel load.As I see it the salient points of the issue are:1. The current MEL as written does not adequately address the particularities of these aircraft without wing MMI's.2. There appears to be a difference in refuel procedures when fuel gauge are inoperative between maintenance stations. The JFK maintenance technicians told me that they are required to sign off on and verify fuel loading were station procedures are that the fuelers verify fuel load via a fuel slip or MMI; as required.3. There is no pilot reference as to what Method 2 and 3 refuel procedures are.1. Establish a dedicated MEL to have specific information about; with procedures and/or limitations for our A321's without wing MMI's.2. Harmonize our refuel verification procedures when operating with inoperative fuel gauges and communicate those procedures to the pilots.3. Provide basic information to the pilots regarding Method 2 and 3 refueling procedures.I wish to state that the JFK maintenance technicians I worked with that night were professional and in my opinion diligently and conscientiously trying to address what they saw as a legitimate concern. Once they laid out their case it became clear that work needs to be done to address information about how to operate these A321's that do not have wing MMI's when they have inoperative fuel gauges.
(Report narrative contained no additional information.)
A321 Captain reported that an MEL had been incorrectly applied; resulting in a flight cancellation.