Performance data must come from ATL?
 

Can somebody explain this a little better?

Earlier this evening I was on a flight that was held for a while just before departure because, according to the pilot, Atlanta was unable to transmit "performance data" to him for takeoff. (I assume that he was talking about V1 calculation but I suppose it could have been something else. I also won't say which flight as I don't want to get anybody in trouble.)

After the flight I got to talk with him and asked why they needed to get that from ATL rather than calculating it on the spot in the cockpit. He replied that he didn't know why DL insisted on doing it with a centralized computer in ATL, that other carriers use a computer in the plane to do it, and that I should write in and complain about it because the more people who complain about such delays the faster DL will give them a computer so they can do the math on their own. He also explained further that the delay was caused when ATL couldn't access the weather data from where we were departing and that if they had been allowed to do the calculation themselves they could have gotten us out of their 15 minutes faster.

Can anybody shed some more light on this? Curious as to what's going on. Should I drop DL a comment on this?

Cheers,
OPos.

I'm assuming the pilot is referring to the WDR (weight data record) transmited via ACARS. The process was changed a couple of months ago to help on-time departures. The pilot can close the door and push before they even get that data just as long as it gets it's pre-push data...except in cases where it is weight critcial and must stay at the gate and get the WDR before push or ACARS is INOP where they must get a copy of the WDR from the gate.
The only time I've heard the pilots call dispatch to get numbers is usually on DCI where there ACARS is INOP since they no longer carry the "wheel".

Figures. As long as Delta continues to assume ATL is the center of the world, they will have these kinds of issues like always requiring the pilots to "call home" rather than just give them the tools they need to finish the job on the spot.

The ATL-centric attitude extends far beyond what is essentially a domestic FF program with next to no focus on any international markets (still waiting for global FF redemption charts, you know the same ones NW had for years but were taken down and not replaced once the merger happened).

The weight-and-balance data gets computed with a feed of passenger from the gate. Once calculated, it gets transmitted to the cockpit. This is much safer than having pilots do manual data entry and using the onboard computer to come up with the numbers. This may seem like just paperwork for paperworks sake but incorrect numbers will tell the pilots the wrong takeoff speeds which can lead to a tail strike or worse.

Well, Atlanta is where Delta's operations control center is located. Not sure where else it would come from.

i had a similar situation last week, was at a small regional airport, the md-88 pushed and started taxi. We stopped and the pilot came on PA and said they were having trouble with the communications system that talks to "the company" and he couldn't get the weight-and-balance information he needed. We would have to go back to the gate and get the information "manually" I was in F and the door never opened so I guess the ground crew must have plugged in and told him what he needed

Performance data usually includes the runway takeoff data, that tell the pilot's which RWY's they can use during prevailing weather conditions and how to set the trim/flaps and other stuff accordingly. In changing or inclement weather conditions this can be a challenge.

UA's system has been automated for years, and occasionally this happens to them too. IIRC, the gate agent and the ramp have to have final numbers (they call it their "lockout") confirmed within 5 minutes of push or so to calculate CG and TO weights for the FMS. If it is outside of limits, it alerts the load planner and dispatcher who can take the appropriate actions.

Let's make it another NW vs. Delta bash, for crying out loud. Please.