A missing or damaged lower beacon is found to have been improperly deferred on an air carrier B767.

Attributes
ACN	510280
Time
Date	200105
Day	Thu
Local Time Of Day	1201 To 1800
Place
Locale Reference	airport : bos.airport
State Reference	MA
Altitude	agl single value : 0
Aircraft 1
Controlling Facilities	tower : bwi.tower
Operator	common carrier : air carrier
Make Model Name	B767 Undifferentiated or Other Model
Flight Plan	IFR
Person 1
Affiliation	company : air carrier
Function	flight crew : first officer
Qualification	pilot : atp
Experience	flight time type : 724
ASRS Report	510280
Events
Anomaly	aircraft equipment problem : less severe maintenance problem : improper documentation
Resolutory Action	none taken : detected after the fact
Supplementary
Problem Areas	Maintenance Human Performance
Primary Problem	Maintenance Human Performance

Narrative:

Aircraft X had a deferral for a lower beacon cover missing/damaged. Found out after arrival that deferral was not proper per the MEL and should have expired after 10 days. As a result, the aircraft was flown illegally for 8 days. The mrd only referenced a cdl deferral number and no MEL number.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A MISSING OR DAMAGED LOWER BEACON IS FOUND TO HAVE BEEN IMPROPERLY DEFERRED ON AN ACR B767.

Narrative: ACFT X HAD A DEFERRAL FOR A LOWER BEACON COVER MISSING/DAMAGED. FOUND OUT AFTER ARR THAT DEFERRAL WAS NOT PROPER PER THE MEL AND SHOULD HAVE EXPIRED AFTER 10 DAYS. AS A RESULT, THE ACFT WAS FLOWN ILLEGALLY FOR 8 DAYS. THE MRD ONLY REFED A CDL DEFERRAL NUMBER AND NO MEL NUMBER.

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.