Narrative:

While boarding the aircraft at the jetway in las, I received a call from a flight attendant toward the back of the aircraft. She informed me that a back of one of the seats felt hot. I called a mechanic to go back and check the seat. Just before the cabin was secured I called back to the lead flight attendant and asked her what was the outcome of the mechanic checking the seat. She told me she knew nothing about it. I asked her to go back and check with the flight attendant who called me. After checking, she called up front and said the mechanic said the oxygen generator for those seats was inoperative, and the passenger in those seats were moved. Since the mechanic never said anything to me, or nothing was on the MEL, I assumed that nothing was wrong. The next step would have been to call the mechanic, but the jetway was already pulled and the flight was running late. So I went with the assumption that the mechanic would have informed me. Fact of the matter the oxygen generator did discharge and the mechanic did not MEL the seats.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: THE RPTR (ACR DC10 CAPT) FLEW A TRIP WITH AN INOP PAX OXYGEN UNIT THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN PLACED ON MEL. A UNIT HAD BEEN ACTIVATED, BUT THE MECH DID NOT FIX OR MEL THE PROB. THE CAPT ASSUMED THAT THE UNIT HAD NOT ACTIVATED SINCE HE DID NOT HEAR ANYTHING FROM THE MECH OR SEE THE ITEM ON MEL.

Narrative: WHILE BOARDING THE ACFT AT THE JETWAY IN LAS, I RECEIVED A CALL FROM A FLT ATTENDANT TOWARD THE BACK OF THE ACFT. SHE INFORMED ME THAT A BACK OF ONE OF THE SEATS FELT HOT. I CALLED A MECH TO GO BACK AND CHK THE SEAT. JUST BEFORE THE CABIN WAS SECURED I CALLED BACK TO THE LEAD FLT ATTENDANT AND ASKED HER WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME OF THE MECH CHKING THE SEAT. SHE TOLD ME SHE KNEW NOTHING ABOUT IT. I ASKED HER TO GO BACK AND CHK WITH THE FLT ATTENDANT WHO CALLED ME. AFTER CHKING, SHE CALLED UP FRONT AND SAID THE MECH SAID THE OXYGEN GENERATOR FOR THOSE SEATS WAS INOP, AND THE PAX IN THOSE SEATS WERE MOVED. SINCE THE MECH NEVER SAID ANYTHING TO ME, OR NOTHING WAS ON THE MEL, I ASSUMED THAT NOTHING WAS WRONG. THE NEXT STEP WOULD HAVE BEEN TO CALL THE MECH, BUT THE JETWAY WAS ALREADY PULLED AND THE FLT WAS RUNNING LATE. SO I WENT WITH THE ASSUMPTION THAT THE MECH WOULD HAVE INFORMED ME. FACT OF THE MATTER THE OXYGEN GENERATOR DID DISCHARGE AND THE MECH DID NOT MEL THE SEATS.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 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.