Originally Posted by
ECAMACTIONSCOMPLETE
Who is arguing to get rid of MELs? There are plenty of aircraft defects that are simple no go items. Perhaps operating with only 1 pack operable should be a no go defect. I have flown with plenty of captains at my airline who have refused an aircraft before due to an MEL being applied which may be legal to operate with but which in their opinion has too large an impact on the safety of the operation.
ECAM, you're missing my point. MEL relief is based on the probability of the next failure which could cause a problem - along with the potential severity of the problem. Packs are normally extremely reliable. Hence if dispatching MEL with an inop pack before the problem is fixed, the probability that the other pack will fail is very small during the 10 day MEL relief. If there really have been three events in the last 12 months where Qantas dispatched MEL with a pack inop, and the second pack failed, it doesn't mean there is something wrong with the MEL - 737 operators all over the world are operating to the same MEL and not having a problem (and the in-service 737 fleet is huge). It probably means there is something wrong with the way Qantas is maintaining their packs.