MECHANIC DESCRIBES THE EVENTS SURROUNDING HIS DOWNGRADING A DHC-8-400 ACFT TO A CAT-1 FROM CAT-3 STATUS; DUE TO LACK OF CORRECT PART; ONLY TO FIND OUT THE NEXT DAY; THE ACFT HAD BEEN UPGRADED.

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THIS RPT IS TO TELL OF EVENTS THAT TOOK PLACE AT THE ZZZ GATE IN MAINT OFFICE. I HAD BEEN WORKING SINCE AROUND THE BEGINNING OF THE YR AS AN EXPERIENCED TECHNICIAN (FIELD DUTY); A TRAINER; AND LEADS ASSISTANT TO HELP TRAIN THE NEW PERSONNEL IN THE MAINT DEPT. ON THAT DAY; ONE OF THE MECHS NEEDED TO CHANGE AN EFCP (EFIS CTL PANEL MFG BY THALES) ON A Q400. THE IPC LISTED PART NUMBER X1 OR X2 AS CTLS THAT COULD BE INSTALLED IN THE ACFT. IN THE TRACKING SYS THE ONLY PARTS WE STOCKED WERE X2 AND THE REST OF THE FLEET HAD THIS PART INSTALLED AS WELL. I INSERTED MYSELF IN THE CONVERSATION AT THIS TIME AND LOOKED IN THE LINE MANUAL TO FIND IF THIS PART NUMBER WAS ON THE CAT 3 PROGRAM; THE ONLY ONE ON THE LIST WAS AN X1. I TOLD THE SUPVR MGR MR X ON STAFF THAT DAY THAT; I WOULD ONLY BE ABLE TO GRANT THE ACFT CAT 1 STATUS. WE CALLED MAINT CTL TO INFORM THEM; THAT THE ACFT WOULD BE DOWNGRADED TO CAT 1 DUE TO THE LINE MANUAL LIST OF APPROVED COMPONENTS. THE MGR MR X CALLED THE AVIONICS MGR MR Y TO ASK ABOUT THE LIST LINE MANUAL IN QUESTION AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE LIST IN THE LINE MANUAL; TO MR Y; WAS JUST FOR REF AND WAS TO BE USED AS SUCH. ALSO; THAT THE LIST OF APPROVED CAT 3 PARTS IS IN THE MAINT/PARTS/PC TRACKING SYS PROGRAM ON THE COMPUTER AND WAS NOW THE RESOURCE WE WERE TO USE. I DID NOT ACCEPT THIS ANSWER FIRST BECAUSE IT WAS TOTALLY AGAINST THE TRAINING WE RECEIVED IN THE LINE MANUAL PROGRAM; AND THE LINE MANUAL BOOK HAS NO GREEN SHEET OR ANY STATEMENTS DIRECTING ME TO USE THE TRACKING SYS AS THE FINAL WORD ON WHAT IS CAT 3 OR NOT. I TOLD MR X MY DECISION WILL STAND AND THAT I WAS DOWNGRADING THE ACFT TO CAT 1. HE TOLD MR Y; WHO TOLD MR X TO TELL ME; TO SIGN OFF THE CAT 3 ANYWAYS. I STILL SIGNED OFF THE ACFT AS CAT 1 AFTER INSTALLING THE CTLR AND PERFORMING THE OPS TESTS REQUIRED. LATER; THE NEXT DAY I LOOKED AT THE TRACKING SYS AND FOUND OUT THAT THERE WAS NO DHC8-400 ACFT OPERATING AS CAT 1 (THE ACFT HAD BEEN UPGRADED). I ASKED MR X ABOUT IT AND WAS TOLD THAT MR Y WAS ALREADY WORKING ON THE REVISION ON THE LINE MANUAL. I LOOKED AT THE LINE MANUAL AND FOUND THAT IT HAD NOT BEEN CHANGED.