Date: 201309
Local time of day: 1801-2400
Location: ZZZ.Airport, US
Flight conditions: VMC
Light: Night
Aircraft: B737-300
Operator: Air Carrier
Operating under: Part 121
Mission: Passenger
Flight phase: Parked
Aircraft component: Electrical Wiring & Connectors
Component problem: Malfunctioning
Reporter organization: Air Carrier
Reporter function: Pilot Not Flying; First Officer
Human factors: Communication Breakdown; Training / Qualification
Second reporter function: Pilot Not Flying; Captain
Anomaly: Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural FAR; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Detector: Person Flight Attendant
When detected: In-flight
Result: General Flight Cancelled / Delayed; General Maintenance Action
Contributing factors: Aircraft; Procedure; Company Policy
Primary problem: Aircraft

Narrative: Upon completing the aircraft exterior preflight and entering the jetway; I noticed Maintenance was talking to my Captain and the inbound pilot crew further up the jetway. After completing the interior cockpit preflight and logbook review; I determined that the aircraft was airworthy. After arriving at the gate at our destination; the Captain said he would do the post-flight walkaround. As I came out of the cockpit; two flight attendants informed me that as the aircraft touched down on the runway; sparks flew from the outlet plug located in the forward galley; adjacent to the forward service door. At this time; the Captain returned from the post-flight walkaround and I told the flight attendants to brief the Captain on the sparks shooting from the outlet. I told the Captain that we should document this as a defect in the aircraft logbook. The Captain replied that he didn't think it was necessary; I told him that I felt it was required. After finally agreeing; the Captain returned to the cockpit to make the necessary logbook entry. While he was doing that; the flight attendants told me that the inbound flight attendant crew in previous departure airport had informed them that upon landing; sparks flew from the same outlet. I asked for clarification from the flight attendants to make sure I understood correctly that this problem not only had just happened; but happened in the same way on the previous flight. They reiterated that my understanding was correct. At that point I asked the Captain; 'Were you aware of the outlet shooting sparks?' He replied; 'Yes.' I asked him why he didn't document it in the logbook for maintenance resolution and brief me on the faulty outlet. The Captain said he didn't think it was a big deal. I was not satisfied with that answer so I continued to press him for more information. He responded that after talking to Maintenance and the previous flight crew before departure; he felt it wasn't a big deal and apparently felt that including me in this discussion wasn't necessary. I vehemently disagreed with the fact that the Captain chose to make this decision without briefing me and documenting it in the aircraft logbook for proper maintenance resolution. Had I been aware of the faulty outlet in the previous airport; I would have refused to fly the aircraft until Maintenance satisfactorily addressed the issue. In retrospect; it is abundantly clear that the Captain's complete disregard for CRM and hazardous lack of judgment caused us to take an aircraft that was potentially not airworthy.


Second narrative: I was involved in an aircraft swap and when I arrived at the new aircraft the inbound Captain and a Company Mechanic were discussing a minor maintenance issue reported by a Flight Attendant on said aircraft. The Mechanic had troubleshot the issue; could not duplicate it and said ops checks good. Based on the reported issue and the fact that a Company Mechanic had checked it out; I felt there was no safety issue and I took the plane. Upon arrival at our destination; our flight attendants reported the same issue so I wrote it in the logbook and then called Dispatch and Maintenance Control to report it. I remarked to the First Officer that it is odd to have the same issue twice in the same day. The First Officer was performing his walkaround while the previous Captain and Mechanic were discussing the issue so he missed this conversation. I brought him up to speed on that conversation and he mentioned the previous crew should have documented the Mechanic's visit in the logbook but they didn't. At that point in time I believed that since the aircraft was not under my control during this transition (crew swap) that it was the previous crew's responsibility to document it.I am still a bit uncertain as to who was really obligated to document it since there was a transfer of aircraft control. The Mechanic stated to the previous Captain that the aircraft was airworthy; which was my #1 concern; and then they turned the aircraft over to me. However; after giving it more thought on the layover; I believe that since the previous crew ultimately did not document the visit by the Mechanic; the most conservative and prudent route would have been for me to do so or ask the Mechanic to do so. I don't feel this is a question of safety; but rather a possible lapse in documentation.I should have discussed this issue with the First Officer because he might have prompted me to follow up with the Mechanic. At least we would have had a discussion related to the matter. It's always best to have both of us thinking about the same issue. However; it didn't cross my mind during the swap to discuss it with him since I considered it to be a resolved issue. We were an hour and a half late so I was focusing on prepping the plane for departure.


Synopsis: A First Officer objected to flying an aircraft with a forward galley electrical problem which the Flight Attendant alerted him about; then discovered that the Captain had known about the problem before the previous departure and chosen not to address it.