FLC CONSULTED MEL ENRTE; AND BECAME UNCERTAIN REGARDING ACFT'S AIRWORTHINESS.

Narrative

WE WERE DISPATCHED FOR A FLT FROM HUF TO LAX. TYPE ACFT WAS A CARGO FRAME B727. THE MECH RETURNED TO THE ACFT WITH THE ACFT LOGBOOK. AT THIS POINT THE ACFT WAS LOADED; THE DOORS WERE CLOSED; AND THE PAPERWORK AND CHKLISTS WERE COMPLETED. THE MECH HANDED ME THE LOGBOOK AND INFORMED ME THAT ONE OF THE ANTI-COLLISION BEACONS HAD BEEN DEFERRED. I TOOK HIS WORD FOR IT (WITHOUT CHKING THE MEL) AND DEPARTED FOR HUF. ENRTE; WHILE CHKING THE MEL; I DISCOVERED THAT THE ACFT COULD NOT HAVE ITS ANTI- COLLISION LIGHT DEFERRED UNLESS THE ACFT WAS EQUIPPED WITH STROBE LIGHTS. ACFT WAS NOT EQUIPPED WITH STROBE LIGHTS. ON ARR IN LAX I CONTACTED BOTH MAINT AND THE CHIEF PLT. BOTH ASSURED ME THAT THE OTHER ANTI-COLLISION LIGHT (THE ONE THAT WAS NOT DEFERRED) WAS IN FACT A STROBE LIGHT. THE MEL IS NOT CLR ON THIS; HENCE THIS RPT. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: CAPT STATES THAT THIS RPT EMANATED FROM A FALSE ALARM. CONFUSION AROSE OVER THE MEANINGS OF THE TERMS 'STROBE' VERSUS 'BEACON' LIGHT. THE B727-200 IS EQUIPPED WITH WINGTIP STROBES AND 2 RED LIGHTS -- THE ONE ON TOP IS A BEACON; AND A RED FLASHING STROBE IS MOUNTED ON THE BELLY. THE UPPER BEACON WAS INOP; LEAVING THE WINGTIP STROBES AND THE BELLY OPERATING; AND THEREFORE FUNCTIONING AS MORE THAN THE MINIMUM ANTI-COLLISION SYS NECESSARY FOR A LEGAL FLT. RPTR STATES THAT THE MANY DIFFERENT INTERPS AND THEIR DISAGREEMENT ADDED TO THE PROB. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 316444: THE LOGBOOK WAS NOT GIVEN TO THE CREW BY MAINT UNTIL 10 MINS AFTER DEP TIME. THE LOGBOOK HAD SEVERAL WRITE-UPS CONCERNING EXTERNAL ACFT LIGHTING. IT WAS UNDERSTOOD BY THE CREW THAT WE COULD FLY WITHOUT A WORKING UPPER ROTATING BEACON AT NIGHT SINCE ALL OTHER LIGHTS ON THE ACFT WERE OPERATIONAL. UPON ARRIVING AT THE ACFT THE NEXT DAY IN LAX MAINT NOTED THAT WE COULD NOT FLY AT NIGHT WITHOUT AN OPERATIONAL UPPER BEACON. WE RECHKED THE MEL AND DISCOVERED THAT ON 'SOME' ACFT WITHOUT ANTI-COLLISION STROBE LIGHTS THIS IS TRUE. WE WERE ON SUCH AN ACFT.