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B737-700 flight crew reported they deviated from SOP when they pulled and reset a TCAS circuit breaker in flight to restore the system to operation.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1351643 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201604 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.Airport |
| State Reference | US |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | B737-700 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Climb |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 198 |
| Person 2 | |
| Function | First Officer |
| Experience | Flight Crew Last 90 Days 37 |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy |
Narrative:
[After departure]; we were leveled off at 10;000 feet for an extended time. After several minutes; I queried the controller and was informed that we were being held down due to opposite direction traffic [that was] descending to level off 3;000 feet above us. At that time I noticed we had a TCAS fail light. I felt a bit vulnerable being 'blinded' in highly congested airspace; and exercising captain's judgment; elected to cycle the TCAS circuit breaker. The system restored to normal operation for the remainder of flight. After level off at cruise; I began to research in more detail the situation; and realized I may have overstepped my authority. The aircraft operation manual (aom) does allow a tripped circuit breaker to be reset once if; in the judgment of the captain; regaining that system is critical to the safe conduct of flight. However; the TCAS breaker was not tripped. I cycled it. Upon further reading; the aom lists specific criteria when a circuit breaker can be cycled. My situation did not meet the letter of the law. At the time of the occurrence I assumed cycling and tripped could be treated the same. I notified dispatch and maintenance upon arrival and wrote up the TCAS system; which was cleared by maintenance. I also discussed with chief pilot on duty.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: B737-700 flight crew reported they deviated from SOP when they pulled and reset a TCAS circuit breaker in flight to restore the system to operation.
Narrative: [After departure]; we were leveled off at 10;000 feet for an extended time. After several minutes; I queried the Controller and was informed that we were being held down due to opposite direction traffic [that was] descending to level off 3;000 feet above us. At that time I noticed we had a TCAS FAIL light. I felt a bit vulnerable being 'blinded' in highly congested airspace; and exercising Captain's judgment; elected to cycle the TCAS circuit breaker. The system restored to normal operation for the remainder of flight. After level off at cruise; I began to research in more detail the situation; and realized I may have overstepped my authority. The Aircraft Operation Manual (AOM) does allow a tripped circuit breaker to be reset once if; in the judgment of the Captain; regaining that system is critical to the safe conduct of flight. However; the TCAS breaker was not tripped. I cycled it. Upon further reading; the AOM lists specific criteria when a circuit breaker can be cycled. My situation did not meet the letter of the law. At the time of the occurrence I assumed cycling and tripped could be treated the same. I notified Dispatch and Maintenance upon arrival and wrote up the TCAS system; which was cleared by Maintenance. I also discussed with Chief Pilot on Duty.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site 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.