A B757-200 HAD A FUEL TOTALIZER DEFERRED AS INOP PER THE MEL. PROC TO VERIFY FUEL QUANTITY INDICATION ACCURACY WILL NOT WORK WITH THE UPGRADED FMS.

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AUG/SAT/06 AT XA15Z CHKED RELEASE AND NOTICED THAT TOTALIZER FUEL QUANTITY INDICATOR INOP PER MEL. OPS PLACARD REQUIRED CREW TO ENTER KNOWN FUEL QUANTITY ON FUEL LINE OF FMC PERFORMANCE INIT PAGE; THEN SELECT MAINT FROM INDEX; SELECT SENSORS FROM MAINT INDEX AND CONFIRM THAT BOTH FUEL FLOW INDICATIONS ON FMC INDICATE 'OK.' WHEN SELECTING MAINT; THERE WERE NO FUEL FLOW INDICATIONS TO READ. CALLED MAINT AND EXPLAINED THAT I COULD NOT COMPLY WITH THE MEL CARD. MAINT ASKED IF WE HAD THE NEW FMC UPGRADE INSTALLED. I AFFIRMED THAT THIS WAS ONE OF THE RECENTLY CONFIGURED FMC'S. HE SAID THEN WE WERE GOING TO HAVE A PROB AND HANDED ME OFF TO SECOND CTLR. HE STATED THAT THEY WERE AWARE OF THE PROB; AND THAT WE COULD NOT LEGALLY DEFER QUANTITY INDICATORS BECAUSE OF THE NEW FMC; AND THAT THE ONLY OPTION WAS TO FIX THE GAUGES. I TOLD MAINT THAT THE TOTALIZER APPEARED TO BE INDICATING CORRECTLY BASED ON PRE-SVC FUEL AND TOTAL FUEL AFTER WE WERE FUELED. I ASKED IF THERE WERE ANY MORE HISTORY THAN THE 1 GRIPE ON TOTALIZER BEING IN ERROR. HE STATED ONLY THE 1 GRIPE. I ASKED IF WE COULD HAVE A MECH COME OUT AND VERIFY THAT INDICATOR WAS NORMAL AND CLR WRITE-UP WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT IF TOTALIZER WENT INOP AGAIN ENRTE AND FUEL FLOW INDICATORS WERE TO ALSO GO INOP THAT WE WOULD LAND ASAP AT NEAREST SUITABLE ARPT SINCE WE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DETERMINE IF WE WERE LEAKING FUEL. MAINT AGREED; THEY CAME AND VERIFIED OP OF TOTALIZER AND CLRED ITEM AND ISSUED NEW RELEASE. MY CONCERN IS TWOFOLD. HOW MANY CREWS ACCEPTED THIS ACFT WITH THE ILLEGAL DEFERRAL AND OBVIOUSLY DID NOT COMPLY WITH MEL CARD REQUIREMENTS? SECONDLY; WHY DID MAINT DEFER THIS ACFT IN THE FIRST PLACE IF THEY WERE ALREADY AWARE OF THE PROB?