The paper presents differences between technical states and technical operation states of haul trucks in the technical operation process. The specification and analysis of operational parameters of technological vehicles used in surface mining is possible only due to more and more frequently used diagnostic – telemetric systems. While a detailed analysis of machines operation data can result in the more effective management of mining plant operations and the mining process itself. The determination of operational state indices and their individual components allows preventive actions to be commenced, resulting in improving the work organization of the entire mine machinery system. Moreover, the future technical state of machines operated in surface mining is strictly related to the current state and also depends on the events that occurred in the extraction system. A set of parameter values of individual state characteristics, which allow the haul trucks technical and operational state to be characterized, is a direct effect of a telemetric – diagnostic system operation.