Narrative:

An automated delay came across my screen printer. I immediately took action and called operations to gather more information. Once I was informed it was due to late bags; I went to put in the correct delay. Unfortunately they posted an out time right before I hit enter. Now I am unable to change the delay without deleting the out time and manually entering the correct out time.I have been informed that aut (auto) delays have been causing incorrect minimum off time calculations - if not corrected. So if that is truly occurring; and I have this happen on my desk alone at least twice a day if not more. Sometimes I have the time and energy to write a report - most days I do not; and many dispatchers do not seem to care. However; one has to wonder how this is effecting far 117. Unnecessary flight cancellations due to discrepancies and flights potentially departing illegally. Also; since the introduction of the aut delay; how is that allowing the company to track the real reason for delays so that supervisors can be alerted to systemic issues that need to be addressed in a timely manner?and most off all; the aut delay is impeding on the dispatcher being able to perform his/her job correctly according to the far's. Being informed on why a flight is delayed and then delaying the flight is huge part of our job. Rarely do I have a pilot or a person in ops update me on the status of a flight even though they are right there with the most information on what is occurring with the flight.the aut could be a useful tool if it was used to alert the dispatcher of a delayed flight and not actually post uninformative delays. The aut needs to be an alert message only.also the creation of a record history for each flight that allows for the monitoring of delays; crew; maintenance; flight interruptions; notes; etc to be found in one place which can be accessed by dispatcher; gate; ops; unit; bridge; etc. Or provide training on using the record history in sabre as a flight monitoring tool for all those involved which may help alleviate unnecessary phone calls and allow for an increased workload to be executed more efficiently.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A Dispatcher reported the Automated Delay alert once activated cannot be easily overridden and after an aircraft out time is established the flight's clock is running even at the gate which can affect FAR 117 crew legality as well as other company and FAA considerations.

Narrative: An Automated Delay came across my Screen Printer. I immediately took action and called OPS to gather more information. Once I was informed it was due to late bags; I went to put in the correct delay. Unfortunately they posted an out time right before I hit enter. Now I am unable to change the delay without deleting the out time and manually entering the correct out time.I have been informed that AUT (Auto) delays have been causing incorrect Minimum OFF Time calculations - if not corrected. So if that is truly occurring; and I have this happen on my desk alone at least TWICE a day if not more. Sometimes I have the time and energy to write a report - most days I do not; and many dispatchers do not seem to care. However; one has to wonder how this is effecting FAR 117. Unnecessary flight cancellations due to discrepancies and flights potentially departing illegally. Also; since the introduction of the AUT delay; how is that allowing the company to track the real reason for delays so that supervisors can be alerted to systemic issues that need to be addressed in a timely manner?And most off all; the AUT delay is impeding on the Dispatcher being able to perform his/her job correctly according to the FAR's. Being informed on why a flight is delayed and then delaying the flight is huge part of our job. Rarely do I have a pilot or a person in ops update me on the status of a flight even though they are right there with the most information on what is occurring with the flight.The AUT could be a useful tool if it was used to alert the dispatcher of a delayed flight and not actually post uninformative delays. The AUT needs to be an alert message only.Also the creation of a record history for each flight that allows for the monitoring of delays; crew; maintenance; flight interruptions; notes; etc to be found in one place which can be accessed by dispatcher; gate; ops; unit; bridge; etc. Or provide training on using the Record History in Sabre as a flight monitoring tool for all those involved which may help alleviate unnecessary phone calls and allow for an increased workload to be executed more efficiently.

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.