Commercial Fixed Wing
Maintenance Airframe; Maintenance Powerplant
Communication Breakdown; Situational Awareness; Time Pressure; Workload
Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
General Maintenance Action
Human Factors; Procedure; Logbook Entry
Last night I was assigned by the Crew Chief to work Aircraft X. Aside from the routine check; It had a thrust reverser on number 2 engine problem; a problem with a lavatory door and a problem with the aft water drain mast. Crew Chief instructed me to NOT look into the engine problem or the drain mast due to lack of manpower. He instructed me to look into the lavatory door to see if it can be adjusted. During the check I also found a tire that was worn and needed to be changed. I completed the check; replaced the worn tire and looked into the lavatory door. The lavatory door was reported as 'sticking' in flight. Our technical services department recommended we do a repair in accordance with Manual reference; because it was reported by a previous mechanic that the hinge was worn. I looked at the door; confirmed that the hinge was worn and advised the Crew Chief that I needed another mechanic to help comply with the repair. Crew Chief instructed me to leave it alone because it was time consuming and we did not have the additional manpower. So I proceeded to document my findings and continued with the deferral for the door. I also updated the drain mast problem with a continued deferral due to manpower. Supervisor was not satisfied with me not fixing the door or the drain mast. He confronted me about it and I explained to him that I was following Crew Chief instructions and that he needed to speak to the Crew Chief for an explanation. Next; I noticed that Crew Chief falsified documents by him signing off on these items like if he fixed the door and reinspected the drain mast. It is my belief that the Crew Chief never went to the aircraft to look at these discrepancies. This is falsification of documents which is a serious offense. I verified that the hinge was worn and needed the document to be completed.It is my belief that this event occurred because of the pressure exerted on the Crew Chief by the Supervisor. Supervisor advised me that he had to explain to his superiors why the lavatory door and the drain mast reinspection were not addressed and that he now had to take the lavatory out of service and this might cause the flight crew to refuse the aircraft because the first class lavatory is the one that the pilots use in flight for security reasons. Assign the appropriate manpower for the task at hand.
Maintenance Technician reported a Crew Chief may have falsified documents by signing off items that were not accomplished due to time pressure.