Narrative:

On arrival at the airport operations office, 40 mins prior to scheduled departure, I as the captain of the flight reviewed the WX and NOTAMS for departure, en route and destination airport. I determined that adequate fuel and reserves were planned and boarded my aircraft, reviewed the computer flight plan and dispatch release and verified with operations officer that the ATC overwater flight plan route, as per our dispatch release and computer flight plan, had been properly filed with ATC. Then, I signed the dispatch release which verifies that I was in agreement with our dispatcher, and the fuel release and other information used in planning of our flight. Our aircraft was equipped with the required necessary overwater flight equipment, and I was in agreement with our dispatcher on his route selection as furnished with our computer flight plan. This is a normal procedure in mia, as our flight plans are frequently not center stored. This then requires this verification procedure and the manual filing of flight plans with ATC by our mia operations and our dispatcher in hou. Performed the preflight checks, received our start up clearance and taxi instructions and, just prior to departure after some unusual delay, our ATC arwys clearance which was given to us for not the overwater route as filed, but rather for an overland and longer route following the gulf coast. I accepted this overland clearance from mia clearance delivery to avoid the hassle of a further delay, and departed mia international. Shortly then after our departure, and well above the terminal area and departure traffic in the congested mia area while en route to lakeland, fl, I made a request of ATC for a rerte and amended clearance for the shorter overwater route to hou for which we had originally requested and filed, namely dir to sarasota, J86 to sabine pass, and the arrival route into hou intercontinental from the ATC center. I read the requested rerte when I was requested to do so by the ATC controller, who then verified our route. The ATC controller then after but a moment came back and issued us a new clearance as requested over the rerte as requested, complete with a full route readback. I again read back the new clearance to him, and we then immediately proceeded to sarasota as directed and flew the rerted ATC clearance. At no time after receiving our rerte clearance were we advised of any further problem or question by ATC with our flight plan, and our flight was handled by ATC in a very normal manner. 2 days after our arrival, and by a telephone call from my base ass't chief pilot, I was made aware of any alleged irregularity or infraction, and am still unaware of any error or wrong doing on my part, that of my company or my crew. The aircraft was flown on this leg by my first officer, and at all times was flown along the rtes and arwys as clrd by ATC, namely the mia departure with radar vectors to lakeland, then the rerte clearance as requested and received for the then present position dir to sarasota, J86 to sabine pass and the arrival into intercontinental airport hou. Callback conversation with reporter revealed the following: PIC could not add anything to his report and says he has not heard any more from the FAA. The company has taken no action against the flight crew. The reporter repeated the claim that getting a clearance from mia is difficult a lot of the time, but having received the desired re-clearance he does not know where this situation went wrong.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: ATC ALLEGES AN ACR LGT FAILED TO FLY THE ROUTE AS CLEARED. 4 FLT CREW CONFIRM THAT A RECLRNC WAS FILED, RECEIVED AND FLOWN AS GIVEN.

Narrative: ON ARR AT THE ARPT OPS OFFICE, 40 MINS PRIOR TO SCHEDULED DEP, I AS THE CAPT OF THE FLT REVIEWED THE WX AND NOTAMS FOR DEP, ENRTE AND DEST ARPT. I DETERMINED THAT ADEQUATE FUEL AND RESERVES WERE PLANNED AND BOARDED MY ACFT, REVIEWED THE COMPUTER FLT PLAN AND DISPATCH RELEASE AND VERIFIED WITH OPS OFFICER THAT THE ATC OVERWATER FLT PLAN RTE, AS PER OUR DISPATCH RELEASE AND COMPUTER FLT PLAN, HAD BEEN PROPERLY FILED WITH ATC. THEN, I SIGNED THE DISPATCH RELEASE WHICH VERIFIES THAT I WAS IN AGREEMENT WITH OUR DISPATCHER, AND THE FUEL RELEASE AND OTHER INFO USED IN PLANNING OF OUR FLT. OUR ACFT WAS EQUIPPED WITH THE REQUIRED NECESSARY OVERWATER FLT EQUIP, AND I WAS IN AGREEMENT WITH OUR DISPATCHER ON HIS RTE SELECTION AS FURNISHED WITH OUR COMPUTER FLT PLAN. THIS IS A NORMAL PROC IN MIA, AS OUR FLT PLANS ARE FREQUENTLY NOT CTR STORED. THIS THEN REQUIRES THIS VERIFICATION PROC AND THE MANUAL FILING OF FLT PLANS WITH ATC BY OUR MIA OPS AND OUR DISPATCHER IN HOU. PERFORMED THE PREFLT CHKS, RECEIVED OUR START UP CLRNC AND TAXI INSTRUCTIONS AND, JUST PRIOR TO DEP AFTER SOME UNUSUAL DELAY, OUR ATC ARWYS CLRNC WHICH WAS GIVEN TO US FOR NOT THE OVERWATER RTE AS FILED, BUT RATHER FOR AN OVERLAND AND LONGER RTE FOLLOWING THE GULF COAST. I ACCEPTED THIS OVERLAND CLRNC FROM MIA CLRNC DELIVERY TO AVOID THE HASSLE OF A FURTHER DELAY, AND DEPARTED MIA INTL. SHORTLY THEN AFTER OUR DEP, AND WELL ABOVE THE TERMINAL AREA AND DEP TFC IN THE CONGESTED MIA AREA WHILE ENRTE TO LAKELAND, FL, I MADE A REQUEST OF ATC FOR A RERTE AND AMENDED CLRNC FOR THE SHORTER OVERWATER RTE TO HOU FOR WHICH WE HAD ORIGINALLY REQUESTED AND FILED, NAMELY DIR TO SARASOTA, J86 TO SABINE PASS, AND THE ARR RTE INTO HOU INTERCONTINENTAL FROM THE ATC CTR. I READ THE REQUESTED RERTE WHEN I WAS REQUESTED TO DO SO BY THE ATC CTLR, WHO THEN VERIFIED OUR RTE. THE ATC CTLR THEN AFTER BUT A MOMENT CAME BACK AND ISSUED US A NEW CLRNC AS REQUESTED OVER THE RERTE AS REQUESTED, COMPLETE WITH A FULL RTE READBACK. I AGAIN READ BACK THE NEW CLRNC TO HIM, AND WE THEN IMMEDIATELY PROCEEDED TO SARASOTA AS DIRECTED AND FLEW THE RERTED ATC CLRNC. AT NO TIME AFTER RECEIVING OUR RERTE CLRNC WERE WE ADVISED OF ANY FURTHER PROB OR QUESTION BY ATC WITH OUR FLT PLAN, AND OUR FLT WAS HANDLED BY ATC IN A VERY NORMAL MANNER. 2 DAYS AFTER OUR ARR, AND BY A TELEPHONE CALL FROM MY BASE ASS'T CHIEF PLT, I WAS MADE AWARE OF ANY ALLEGED IRREGULARITY OR INFRACTION, AND AM STILL UNAWARE OF ANY ERROR OR WRONG DOING ON MY PART, THAT OF MY COMPANY OR MY CREW. THE ACFT WAS FLOWN ON THIS LEG BY MY F/O, AND AT ALL TIMES WAS FLOWN ALONG THE RTES AND ARWYS AS CLRD BY ATC, NAMELY THE MIA DEP WITH RADAR VECTORS TO LAKELAND, THEN THE RERTE CLRNC AS REQUESTED AND RECEIVED FOR THE THEN PRESENT POS DIR TO SARASOTA, J86 TO SABINE PASS AND THE ARR INTO INTERCONTINENTAL ARPT HOU. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING: PIC COULD NOT ADD ANYTHING TO HIS RPT AND SAYS HE HAS NOT HEARD ANY MORE FROM THE FAA. THE COMPANY HAS TAKEN NO ACTION AGAINST THE FLT CREW. THE RPTR REPEATED THE CLAIM THAT GETTING A CLRNC FROM MIA IS DIFFICULT A LOT OF THE TIME, BUT HAVING RECEIVED THE DESIRED RE-CLRNC HE DOES NOT KNOW WHERE THIS SIT WENT WRONG.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of August 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.