A B727 CREW; ON APCH TO BHM; CONTINUED TO LNDG WITHOUT THE AID OF THE PAPI.

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WE FLEW A LOC APCH TO RWY 18 IN BHM. IT WAS CONDUCTED IN DAY VMC WITH OVCST CLOUDS AND GUSTY WINDS FAVORING RWY 18. OUR COMPANY PROCS STIPULATE THAT FOR ANY APCH TO RWY 18; THE PAPI MUST BE OPERATIONAL. WE HAD NO NOTAMS; ATIS OR INFO FROM THE TWR TO INDICATE IT WAS NOT OPERATING. WE SIGHTED THE RWY ABOUT 7-10 MI OUT AND I STARTED LOOKING FOR THE PAPI ABOUT 3 MI OUT. AT ABOUT 1 MI AND 300 FT; I STILL COULDN'T MAKE OUT THE PAPI; BUT WE ELECTED TO CONTINUE AND LANDED UNEVENTFULLY. AFTER LNDG; WE ASKED THE TWR IF THE PAPI WAS OPERATIONAL. THE CTLR STATED THEY WERE NOT SHOWING IT OTS. THE CTLR FURTHER SAID THAT THEY HAD NO WAY OF MONITORING IT EXCEPT ACFT RPTS AND THAT THEY WOULD CHK IT OUT. RECOMMENDATIONS: IF A SYS SUCH AS THIS IS REQUIRED FOR CERTAIN OPERATORS; THERE SHOULD BE A WAY FOR ATC TO MONITOR ITS STATUS. RPT FROM OTHER ACFT ARE NOT A SATISFACTORY MONITORING SYS. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: A 'BHM' TWR SPECIALIST REVEALED THAT THE OP OF THE PRECISION APCH PATH INDICATOR LIGHTING (PAPI); IS MONITORED BY THE TWR. NORMAL OP IS INDICATED BY A GREEN LIGHT PRESENTATION WHILE A FAILURE IN THE SYS IS INDICATED BY A RED LIGHT. IF A FAILURE DOES OCCUR; PLTS ARE ADVISED VERBALLY BY THE TWR UNTIL THE INFO CAN BE INCLUDED IN THE 'ATIS' INFO.