B747 FLT CLBING TO 17000 FT OVERSHOT ALT WHILE CAPT WAS HAND FLYING THE ACFT WITHOUT THE FLT DIRECTOR DISPLAYED. FLC WAS DISTR WITH NON ESSENTIAL CONVERSATION WITH N90 DEP CTLR JUST PRIOR TO ALT BUST AND FREQ CHANGE TO ZNY. ZNY CTLR ISSUED AN IMMEDIATE FURTHER CLB WITH NO COMMENTS.

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I WAS PF FLT JFK-NRT ON SEP/XA/97. WE WERE ON JFK DEP CTL WITH AN ALT CLRNC OF 17000 FT. THE WX WAS CAVU AND YES; I WAS HAND FLYING WITHOUT THE FLT DIRECTOR. WE WERE ENJOYING A CONVERSATION WITH DEP CTL ON THE PAX LOAD FLT TIME ETC TO TOKYO'S NRT ARPT. DEP CTL HANDED US OFF TO ZNY AND WHEN THE COPLT CHKED IN WITH ZNY IT WAS AT THIS TIME THAT WE REALIZED WE HAD GONE THROUGH OUR CLRNC ALT OF 17000 FT. I BELIEVE WE WERE AT APPROX 17800 FT. CTR CAME RIGHT BACK AND CLRED US TO FL230. THE MAJOR FACTOR CONTRIBUTING TO THE ALT BUST WAS MY LACK OF SITUATIONAL AWARENESS. OTHER CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE THE OMISSION OF ANY PREPARATORY ALT CALLS FROM OTHER CREW MEMBERS; AN OMISSION THAT OCCURRED MOST LIKELY BECAUSE OF THE COLLEGIAL CONVERSATION WITH DEP CTL AND THE NON-USE OF SOME OR ALL OF THE AUTOFLT SYS. CONCERNING THIS LAST FACTOR; I WOULD HONESTLY HAVE TO SAY THAT I'M GOING TO HAVE TO DEVELOP A PERSONAL MEMORY JOG THAT IS FAIL-SAFE BECAUSE I WILL CONTINUE TO HAND FLY THE ACFT WITH APPROPRIATE REINFORCEMENT OF THE SUBSEQUENT PITFALLS. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 381778: TFC WAS LIGHT AND DEP CTLR INITIATED CONVERSATION REGARDING OUR DEST; NUMBER OF PAX ON BOARD; AND FLT TIME. 17000 FT WAS SET IN BOTH THE MCP AND AWI; NO TONE WAS NOTICED BY ME. JUST PRIOR TO THE HDOF WE WERE ASKED TO IDENT AND MY ATTN WAS FOCUSED DOWN TO MY L ON THE XPONDER WHICH IS LOCATED IN THE CTR PEDESTAL. THERE WAS NO CONFLICT OR LOSS OF SEPARATION; TCASII WAS CLR. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 382026: I ALLOWED ABOVE MENTIONED CONVERSATION AND USUAL COCKPIT DUTIES (READING CLB CHKLIST) TO INTERFERE WITH NORMAL XCHKING OF CAPT'S AND FO'S ALTIMETERS.