A320 dispatcher is informed by captain enroute that the MEL applied to the #2 center tank pump shoul...

Narrative:

Flight was dispatched with #2 center tank pump inoperative; with 6500 pounds in center tank at departure. Approximately 30 minutes after takeoff; captain requested a voice patch with maintenance and told them that he believed the wrong center pump was deferred after not getting proper fuel flow from the #1 center pump while in 'auto fuel feed.' captain came to this conclusion by turning the center fuel feed to 'manual' and turning on the deferred #2 pump. In this state; fuel flow from the center tank was restored normal. Maintenance agreed that the MEL was probably wrong; but made it clear that captain could not continue to operate the #2 pump as it was officially deferred. Captain agreed to shut off #2 and keep #1 running in manual mode for duration of flight until the MEL discrepancy was corrected. I advised captain I was filing a report as I believed the MEL to be incorrect based on what he was telling me; but nevertheless; he should not have turned on that #2 pump without exercising his emergency authority.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A320 Dispatcher is informed by Captain enroute that the MEL applied to the #2 center tank pump should have been applied to the #1 pump. Flight continues to destination.

Narrative: Flight was dispatched with #2 center tank pump inoperative; with 6500 LBS in center tank at departure. Approximately 30 minutes after takeoff; Captain requested a voice patch with Maintenance and told them that he believed the wrong center pump was deferred after not getting proper fuel flow from the #1 center pump while in 'Auto Fuel Feed.' Captain came to this conclusion by turning the center fuel feed to 'manual' and turning on the deferred #2 pump. In this state; fuel flow from the center tank was restored normal. Maintenance agreed that the MEL was probably wrong; but made it clear that Captain could not continue to operate the #2 pump as it was officially deferred. Captain agreed to shut off #2 and keep #1 running in manual mode for duration of flight until the MEL discrepancy was corrected. I advised Captain I was filing a report as I believed the MEL to be incorrect based on what he was telling me; but nevertheless; he should not have turned on that #2 pump without exercising his emergency authority.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.

Attributes
ACN	868393
Time
Date	201001
Local Time Of Day	1201-1800
Place
Locale Reference	ZZZ.Airport
State Reference	US
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	A320
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 121
Flight Phase	Parked
Flight Plan	IFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Fuel Booster Pump
Person 1
Function	Dispatcher
Qualification	Dispatch Dispatcher
Person 2
Function	Technician
Events
Anomaly	Aircraft Equipment Problem Less Severe Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy Deviation - Procedural MEL

A320 dispatcher is informed by captain enroute that the MEL applied to the #2 center tank pump should have been applied to the #1 pump. Flight continues to destination.