Is it true?

[av8r]

Hey guys! I'm just a general aviation guy but had a conversation with a pilot who worked for an airline in the eastern US. We were talking about flight dispatch and he mentioned that dispatchers are often the guys who take the heat when something goes bad or there's a delay? How true is that? How often do you answer your phone only to hear the voice of an angry pilot on the other end? Just curious.

 

[JLF]

You would certainly hear something about an issue that arose out of an act of negligence during the planning phase, or not notifying a flight of a hazardous situation while enroute that compromised safety or caused a disruption in the operation. Otherwise, planes are gonna hit birds, get struck by lightning, divert due to weather/ATC holding, have medical emergencies, and many other irregular operations. Stuff happens.

As far as delays... There are so many departments, people, and variables involved in completing even one flight.

Ops
Ramp
Catering
Mx
ATC
Wx
Flight Crew
In Flight
Crew Sched
Dispatch
Mx Cntrl

Any one of the above can have a hiccup and cause a delay. I will say that dispatch does have to account for all of them and sometimes track them down, get clarification, and take any necessary steps to minimize any further delays if possible. Delays are going to happen. Dispatch is in the business of making things happen. Managers can argue delays in the morning with other managers and who ever else. We don't have time to dwell on them.

Angry Pilots? Nah, not really. Everyone can get a little flustered now and again, but angry doesn't do anyone any good. Everyone from the above listed departments (sure i'm missing some) is generally cool to deal with.

I think the fastest way to get "shut down" by the many different people spread all over the country or countries, would be to get straight up angry at them (sometimes you really really want to though) lol.

 

[F9DXER]

I will say that in 13+ years of dispatching, I venture to guess less than .01% of the calls have been with irate captains. Most of the things he/she may be upset with I have no control over.

The best way to respond to set the mood is when a captain calls asking how is it going? I respond with, "depends on your next question."

From there it is easy.

F9DXER

 

[mission_aviation]

Hey guys! I'm just a general aviation guy but had a conversation with a pilot who worked for an airline in the eastern US. We were talking about flight dispatch and he mentioned that dispatchers are often the guys who take the heat when something goes bad or there's a delay? How true is that? How often do you answer your phone only to hear the voice of an angry pilot on the other end? Just curious.

I remember when I was working the desk and my pilots would call, They were always the calm ones and I was always the fustrated one, simply because they had all the requests and I was the one who had to get things done. It was hard enough to depend on other airlines to relay information, paperwork etc. but when bad weather and maintenance played a factor, it was twice as bad. And on occasion one of my flight attendants would call in sick, or not call in at all and nor show for the flight. But to answer your question, the pilots are not the ones who are going to get flustered. I think that most pilots respect the dispatch profession and that reflects on the relationship you have with them. Trust me, I think people disliked me more than the pilots themselves.