AIRBUS A320 FLC CHKED WITH APCH CTLR TO CONFIRM THE ALT TO WHICH THEY WERE ASSIGNED SINCE THE ONE SET IN THE ALT ALERTER LOOKED TOO LOW. IT WAS. CTLR VERIFIED ALT JUST PRIOR TO CREW REACHING THAT ALT ON DURING THEIR DSCNT.

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WE WERE A LIFEGUARD FLT FROM MSN TO MSP. THE REASON FOR THE LIFEGUARD DESIGNATION WAS BECAUSE WE HAD EYES ON BOARD FOR TRANSPLANT. AFTER DEPARTING MSN; AND USING THE LIFEGUARD CALL SIGN; ZAU ASKED US IF WE WERE A 'PRIORITY FLT.' WE HAD NOT HEARD THE WORD PRIORITY USED WITH A LIFEGUARD FLT BEFORE. WE TOLD CTR WE WERE A LIFEGUARD FLT WITH BODY PARTS ON BOARD. CTR THEN CLRED US DIRECT TO FGT DIRECT TO MSP AND TURNED US OVER TO ZMP. WE ASKED ZMP ABOUT THE PRIORITY TURN AND THEY NEVER HEARD OF IT EITHER. THE PROB WAS THAT THE DIRECT RTE RATHER THAN THE KASPR 2 ARR (WHICH WAS HOW WE WERE FILED) TOOK US RIGHT INTO MINNEAPOLIS DEPS. IT INVOLVED GETTING DOWN WAY EARLY AND EXPEDITED DSCNTS TO GET UNDER DEPS. AT ONE POINT IN MY SCAN; I NOTICED THE ALT WARNING INDICATOR HAD 2800 FT SET IN. I KNEW THIS WAS WRONG. WE WERE DSNDING THROUGH 4500 FT AT THE TIME. I ASKED THE FO TO CONFIRM OUR ALT WITH APCH CTL. APCH SAID 'YOU ARE CLRED TO 4000 FT.' WE RESET THE ALT WARNING INDICATOR AND LEVELED AT 4000 FT. I STILL DON'T KNOW IF WE HAD AN ALTDEV OR NOT. BUT WHAT WE HAD FOR SURE WAS CONFUSION ON OUR PART AND MAYBE FOR APCH CTL. ATC WORKED GREAT WITH US BUT AS THE FO AND I REVIEWED IT ON THE GND WE WONDERED IF IT ALL WAS WORTH IT. I THINK THE 'LIFEGUARD DESIGNATION' IS A GREAT PROGRAM TO AVOID A HOLD; OR A DIVERT; OR A LONG DELAY; BUT TO AVOID A STANDARD ARR ROUTE WITH NORMAL COURSES AND DSCNT POINTS GREATLY INCREASES WORKLOAD FOR THE CTLR AND THE FLC. IT ALSO CAUSES PROBS FOR DEPS. IN OUR CASE; I REALLY DON'T THINK IT SAVED US ANY TIME. IT JUST GREATLY INCREASED THE ODDS OF AN INCIDENT OR ALT BUST.