A320 ACFT PRIOR TO FLT WHEN LOADING MCDU THE # 1 WOULDN'T UPDATE; BUT THE FO WAS PF; SO FLC PROCEEDED. RPTR CAPT DIDN'T NOTICE THE DATABASE DATE NOR KNEW THAT IT WAS NOT ON THE DISPATCH RELEASE OR MEL.

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WHILE LOADING THE MULTI FUNCTION CTL DISPLAY UNIT (MCDU) DATABASE; #1 MULTI FUNCTION CTL DISPLAY UNIT WOULD NOT UPDATE AND #2 DID. THIS WAS WRITTEN UP AND DEFERRED; BUT NO MEL REF WAS ON THE DISPATCH RELEASE AND NO MEL STICKER IN THE COCKPIT. IT'S A CAT C ITEM AND WAS DEFERRED 10 DAYS. DEC/XA/97; LGB-DFW FLEW THE ACFT. FO LOADED THE DATABASE; HE WAS PF. HIS DATABASE WAS CURRENT. I FAILED TO NOTICE MY DATABASE NOT CURRENT BECAUSE I WAS MANAGING OTHER WRITE-UPS AND DELAYS. SYS OPERATED NORMALLY; I HAD NO REASON TO SUSPECT A PROB. DEC/XB/97; DFW-LGB. AGAIN; FO'S LEG. FO LOADED THE DATABASE; HE WAS PF. I WAS DISTRACTED BY ACFT WT AND BAL MANUAL IN ERROR. I WAS IN THE OFFICE ON THE PHONE THE WHOLE TIME DEALING WITH GETTING A CURRENT VERSION TO THE WT AND BAL MANUAL. LGB- DFW; OUTCOME -- CAPT DISCOVERED PROB. CALLED DISPATCH AND GOT A CURRENT STICKER FOR THE LOGBOOK; ACFT AND MEL DATA FOR THE DISPATCH RELEASE. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR CAPT SAID HE WAS VERY UPSET WITH HIS COMPANY AND HAS SINCE QUIT IT. THE PROB INITIALLY STARTED WITH LACK OF CURRENT DATABASE IN THE #1 MCDU; BUT HE DIDN'T NOTICE IT BECAUSE HE WAS DISTRACTED TRYING TO GET A CURRENT WT AND BAL. THE FO LOADED THE #2 MCDU; IT WAS CURRENT AND THE FO WAS TO BE THE PF; SO IT APPEARED TO FUNCTION NORMALLY. IT WAS DISCOVERED LATER THAT THE #1 MCDU DID NOT HAVE THE CURRENT DATABASE BECAUSE WHEN THE GND CREW WAS LOADING IT THE LOADER WENT INOP AND THEY DIDN'T FINISH UPDATING. CONSEQUENTLY; IT WAS NOT INCLUDED ON THE MEL WHICH IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN. THERE WERE OTHER ISSUES WHICH WERE NOT VERY CLR TO EITHER THE RPTR OR THIS ANALYST.