Narrative:

I was preflighting the aircraft; and received a final weight and balance that showed 23.0 for total fuel. The aircraft only had 14.5 on board. I immediately notified the maintenance personnel who arranged for fuel to be added to the requested 23.0 I then called for the ramp agent in charge of the flight and told him the problem; that we had a final west/B but that the fuel on board the aircraft did not match the final. There are two major problems here; first; I have a ramp agent sending me a final west/B (not prelim west/B) without verifying the fuel load 'from any source.' this system is designed to have checks and balances; and one check is for the ground crew to verify the load and fuel; and the flight crew to do the same...if there is a discrepancy; then it should be picked up in this phase. The second problem is that the ramp agent did not understand the difference between a prelim and final west/B; [the agent] kept arguing with me that it is ok to send a final without the fuel on the airplane; and that this is how [its] always [done.] I tried to explain that this is ok for a prelim but not for a final west/B. I finally told the agent that it was wrong; and that I wouldn't accept a final west/B when I did not have the proper fuel on the airplane. Note: the aircraft was fueled and we received the fuel ticket about 15 minutes later. I coordinated with ground operations and they understood the issue. Ground operations was very helpful in coordinating with the ramp office and getting me a prelim and final west/B 'after' the aircraft was fueled. This is very dangerous that ramp agents are sending a final west/B without the proper fuel or cargo accounted for in their preparation. A prelim west/B is for 'planning purposes' and is what we expect; a final west/B is to certify what is on the aircraft; not what we hope will be on the aircraft. If we do not follow this process; then the entire system is invalid. I truly believe that the ramp agent does not understand this concept. If this is how [it is] 'always does it' as [I was] told; then [there is a] need to be trained to do this correctly.human error. I don't believe that cargo on board the aircraft can be verified in a final west/B if it is not on the aircraft; the same for fuel...it cannot be verified to be on board in a final west/B if it is still in the fuel truck and not on the aircraft.we have a series of checks and balances in flight preparation; and part of the checks is the ground personnel working along with the flight crews to ensure correct and proper loading of the aircraft. If there is a discrepancy in the final west/B; determined by either party; then the operation needs to stop until the discrepancy is worked out. In this case; the flight crew found a major discrepancy in the final west/B; and the ramp agent argued with the flight crew that this is the way he always does it instead of listening to the problem and correcting the discrepancy. I respectfully request feedback on this issue.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: B757-200 Captain reported receiving a final weight and balance document that did not accurately reflect fuel on board.

Narrative: I was preflighting the aircraft; and received a final Weight and Balance that showed 23.0 for total fuel. The aircraft only had 14.5 on board. I immediately notified the Maintenance Personnel who arranged for fuel to be added to the requested 23.0 I then called for the Ramp Agent in charge of the flight and told him the problem; that we had a final W/B but that the fuel on board the aircraft did not match the final. There are two major problems here; first; I have a Ramp Agent sending me a Final W/B (not Prelim W/B) without verifying the fuel load 'from any source.' This system is designed to have checks and balances; and one check is for the Ground Crew to verify the load and fuel; and the flight crew to do the same...if there is a discrepancy; then it should be picked up in this phase. The second problem is that the ramp agent did not understand the difference between a Prelim and Final W/B; [the agent] kept arguing with me that it is OK to send a final without the fuel on the airplane; and that this is how [its] always [done.] I tried to explain that this is OK for a prelim but not for a Final W/B. I finally told the agent that it was wrong; and that I wouldn't accept a Final W/B when I did not have the proper fuel on the airplane. NOTE: the aircraft was fueled and we received the fuel ticket about 15 minutes later. I coordinated with Ground Operations and they understood the issue. Ground Operations was very helpful in coordinating with the ramp office and getting me a prelim and final W/B 'after' the aircraft was fueled. This is very dangerous that ramp agents are sending a Final W/B without the proper fuel or cargo accounted for in their preparation. A Prelim W/B is for 'planning purposes' and is what we expect; a Final W/B is to certify what is on the aircraft; not what we hope will be on the aircraft. If we do not follow this process; then the entire system is invalid. I truly believe that the ramp agent does not understand this concept. If this is how [it is] 'always does it' as [I was] told; then [there is a] need to be trained to do this correctly.Human Error. I don't believe that cargo on board the aircraft can be verified in a final W/B if it is not on the aircraft; the same for fuel...it cannot be verified to be on board in a final W/B if it is still in the fuel truck and not on the aircraft.We have a series of checks and balances in flight preparation; and part of the checks is the ground personnel working along with the flight crews to ensure correct and proper loading of the aircraft. If there is a discrepancy in the Final W/B; determined by either party; then the operation needs to stop until the discrepancy is worked out. In this case; the flight crew found a major discrepancy in the final W/B; and the Ramp Agent argued with the flight crew that this is the way he always does it instead of listening to the problem and correcting the discrepancy. I respectfully request feedback on this issue.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site 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.