PNF DISTR BY COMPANY RADIO. ALT ALERTER NOT SET. ACFT DSCNT BELOW ASSIGNED ALT UNTIL CTLR QUESTIONED ALT. RETURNED TO ASSIGNED ALT.

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EVENT FLT WAS OPERATING ON AN IFR FLT FROM BOS TO BHB. APPROX 30 NM SW OF RKD; ZBW CLRED US TO DSND 'AT PLT'S DISCRETION' FROM OUR CRUISE ALT OF 15000 FT MSL TO 11000 FT MSL. FO; ACTING AS PF; INITIATED THE DSCNT UPON CLRNC RECEIPT. OVERHEAD RKD; I ADVISED FO THAT I WAS OFF COM #1 TO CALL COMPANY OPS ON COM #2. AT THE TIME WE WERE DSNDING THROUGH APPROX 12000 FT MSL. WHILE TALKING TO COMPANY OPS I OBSERVED FO SELECT BGR APCH FREQ TO COM #1; INDICATING A HDOF FROM ZBW. WHEN I RETURNED TO COM #1; I OBSERVED FO DSNDING THROUGH 10500 FT MSL. THE ALT ALERTER HAD NOT BEEN RESET TO A LOWER ALT THAN THE ORIGINAL 11000 FT WE WERE CLRED TO DSND TO; BUT SINCE I HAD NOT BEEN MONITORING COM #1; I THOUGHT WE MAY HAVE BEEN CLRED TO A LOWER ALT UPON THE HDOF TO BGR APCH AND THAT THE FO HAD SIMPLY FORGOTTEN TO RESET THE ALERTER. AT APPROX 10300 FT MSL I DISCOVERED I WAS IN ERROR WHEN BGR APCH CALLED US AND ASKED TO VERIFY 'LEVEL AT 11000 FT.' WE QUICKLY INITIATED A CLB BACK TO OUR ASSIGNED ALT AND APOLOGIZED TO BGR APCH FOR THE ERROR. FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THIS INCIDENT WERE MY INATTN TO THE FO'S ACTIONS; AND MY BEING 'OUT OF THE COMS LOOP' WHILE I WAS OFF COM #1. IN THE FUTURE; I WILL TAKE MORE CARE TO MAKE THE STANDARD ALT CALLOUTS; EVEN WHILE OFF THE PRIMARY RADIO FREQ. ALSO; I WILL AVOID MAKING CALLS TO COMPANY OPS WHILE APCHING AN ASSIGNED ALT.