ATL Delays, Delays, Delays.....

["GO AROUND"]

I love telling my passengers almost every time we return to ATL "sorry for the two hour delay folks but Atlanta is in a GROUND DELAY PROGRAM.", for what reason I have no idea! WTF is up with the 2 hr+ EDCT's when the weather is VFR (BKN clouds 3500 and winds were 060@12G16) and putting windshear advisories on the ATIS for a 4 kt gust. Can somone enlighten me on what the real restriction is? I've heard the usual reasons, volume, WX, ATC, etc...but sometimes it seems to be a load of horse sh*%.

Granted, I have only been based in ATL for 10 months, but I don't remember it being as bad the prior 4 years I was flying thru on a trip from DFW.

 

[Butters]

Can't speak for ATL but I know in MSP they frequently run ground stop programs just from volume of traffic. They were commenting about it tonight on the news because they are going to open a new runway which "should" help arrivals.

The ATC guy said that peak capacity for MSP in good weather is 64 arrivals per hour. He also said there are hours where the scheduled arrivals are over 80.

Thank you again, airline management. Never a surprise that you continue to be clueless and help make things worse, not better.

 

[405]

Can't speak for ATL but I know in MSP they frequently run ground stop programs just from volume of traffic. They were commenting about it tonight on the news because they are going to open a new runway which "should" help arrivals.

The ATC guy said that peak capacity for MSP in good weather is 64 arrivals per hour. He also said there are hours where the scheduled arrivals are over 80.

Thank you again, airline management. Never a surprise that you continue to be clueless and help make things worse, not better.

Yeah, that's brilliant, ain't it? The higher you get in management, the less you have to use your brain.

 

[SBD-2U3]

But ATL has been depeaked. VFR and we held over Rome. WTF? Over...

 

[jehtplane]

I love telling my passengers almost every time we return to ATL "sorry for the two hour delay folks but Atlanta is in a GROUND DELAY PROGRAM.", for what reason I have no idea! WTF is up with the 2 hr+ EDCT's when the weather is VFR (BKN clouds 3500 and winds were 060@12G16) and putting windshear advisories on the ATIS for a 4 kt gust. Can somone enlighten me on what the real restriction is? I've heard the usual reasons, volume, WX, ATC, etc...but sometimes it seems to be a load of horse sh*%.

Granted, I have only been based in ATL for 10 months, but I don't remember it being as bad the prior 4 years I was flying thru on a trip from DFW.

Welcome to the busiest airport in the world!

 

[ASAFOE120]

You meant the $hittiest. Right?

 

[IFlyFL410]

yeah, so much for depeaking. It's not just the arrivals either. Getting out of here is no easy task sometimes. On an off note....has anyone been doing the 4.0 degree descent!?!? LOL Apparently, the GO geniuses have never tried to descend at 4.0 at 250 kts on the arrival into ATL. "Candler 123, slow to 250 kts, descend to FL240, expect holding over LGC." "Roger" "Alright, power idle, full spoilers!"

 

[doh]

The ATC guy said that peak capacity for MSP in good weather is 64 arrivals per hour. He also said there are hours where the scheduled arrivals are over 80.

Thank you again, airline management. Never a surprise that you continue to be clueless and help make things worse, not better.

Actually, the government controls the amount of concrete available! And remember what Kennedy,Karter and Kahn (the KKK) said back when they deregulated us: "Any airline can fly to any airport any time they want." So really the gov is at fault for promising one thing and not delivering at their end to allow it to happen.

 

[ohplease!]

On an off note....has anyone been doing the 4.0 degree descent!?!?!"

almost always. Not a problem. Same with S/E taxi in AND out at all airports and not starting the APU until on the ground (never in CVG).

 

[ohplease!]

From what I've been told, the ATC controlers are more than a little pissed about some things (rightfully so, in my opinion) and they have decided to "work by the book", which we all know will never allow the kind of efficiency needed to make ATL "work". Can't call it a "slowdown" but thats exactly what it is.

Same thing some of our clowns do because their so pissed about no new contract. So, you think its ok for you to slow things down to prove your point but not anyone else?

I want a new contract (and rid of ALPA) just as bad as the next person but, I'm not willing to screw some innocent passenger or their family to get it. There has to be another way.

 

["GO AROUND"]

Almost diverted the other day for gas after we had been vectored in every direction but towards ATL and then were told to expect holding over LaGrange. All this when I could seee ATL from LaGrange. Told the controller we were going to divert if we had to hold more than one turn cause we had no gas left to delay any longer. Amazingly we only made the outbound turn and were cleared in. Guess they didn't want to explain a diversion on a clear and a million day.

The 4 degree works in most places other than ATL, but ATC doesn't get it yet. I use it when I can. According to T. Sorrell i flight deck news we now have approval to use 80% N2 as the limit for cooling. Funny, I didn't know Flight deck news superceeded our POH. Brilliant! "But Mr. FAA man it said Bombardier gave us approval to do that, I read it in Flight Deck News." Can't wait for that article in the next issue. Flight training probably wanted to slap Sorrell silly for that.

As for power and air at stations, that's a joke. Either they don't have them, they don't work or too busy to fetch em and hook em up. Heard a 700 capt with a deferred apu complaining about the ground crew that refused to run the huffer so he could run the packs and keep the ac cool during boarding cause all the air carts were either broken or on an ATR.

 

["GO AROUND"]

Are they short staffed, negotiating a contract? WTF?

 

[IFlyFL410]

almost always. Not a problem. Same with S/E taxi in AND out at all airports and not starting the APU until on the ground (never in CVG).

Not as easy on the 70.

 

[nimtz]

I'd wager that you guys at ASA get shafted by Big D when it comes to slot times when there is a ground delay program. In other words Delta assigns its slots so you guys in AVL get two hours while a Delta Mad Dog in RDU sees a twenty minute delay. Happens all the time with CAL/Express in EWR. I saw one of our guys in GSO delayed 5.5 hours yesterday while two CAL flights from ORD ran only one hour late. That's the system. Not always comforting to the planeful of European connections I tend to have in the back when this happens. Welcome to the joys of being the little guy.

 

[FmrFreightDog]

According to T. Sorrell i flight deck news we now have approval to use 80% N2 as the limit for cooling. Funny, I didn't know Flight deck news superceeded our POH. Brilliant! "But Mr. FAA man it said Bombardier gave us approval to do that, I read it in Flight Deck News." Can't wait for that article in the next issue. Flight training probably wanted to slap Sorrell silly for that.

Might want to check that new POH revision.

 

["GO AROUND"]

I havn't been in for 3 days so no I havn't seen a new revision. But that doesn't discount the 2 to 3 weeks that flight deck news has been out.

 

[shamrock]

On an off note....has anyone been doing the 4.0 degree descent!?!? LOL Apparently, the GO geniuses have never tried to descend at 4.0 at 250 kts on the arrival into ATL. "Candler 123, slow to 250 kts, descend to FL240, expect holding over LGC." "Roger" "Alright, power idle, full spoilers!"

I don't know if it's standard advice or not but we were told in CAT 2 class to try 4 degree descents at outstations but not inbound to ATL because of the problems it can cause on the arrivals.

 

[atrdriver]

almost always. Not a problem. Same with S/E taxi in AND out at all airports and not starting the APU until on the ground (never in CVG).

So you're the one.

 

[Tomct]

:uzi:ATL creates its own problems! Oh do I miss the days at DFW with "Go Fast and 210 @ Dietz! Now that was an arrival system! They were able to move a lot of aircraft with that system!
Who Knows!

 

[sweptback]

:uzi:ATL creates its own problems! Oh do I miss the days at DFW with "Go Fast and 210 @ Dietz! Now that was an arrival system! They were able to move a lot of aircraft with that system!
Who Knows!

I don't think it was the arrival system as much as the 4 landing runways... but I could be wrong.