Narrative:

After observing a very chaotic boarding and before the purser gave us the 'cabin is ready' announcement we were also informed that the plane was completed full. We pushed back and initiated our taxing to the active runway; upon receiving the final weight manifest we discovered that load planning computed the final numbers with a load eleven people short of the full load actually on board. We proceeded to send a message to load planning with the correct numbers since a few individuals made us aware at the gate that we had a full plane. Then it took 25 minutes at the penalty box for load planning to send us the corrected numbers. The difference on the takeoff gross weight turned out to be 2480 pounds. The rest of the flight was uneventful. I am deeply concerned that we are following SOP by trusting the final numbers coming from the printer when now it is evident that someone failed to provide load planning with the 'final picture'. After our arrival; I called both the dispatcher and the load-planning supervisor. I was informed that an investigation was initiated not only by departure station customer service department but also by load planning management over flight this flights handling. I truly believe safety is compromised in the name of 'on time departure'; too much pressure it is on the customer service representatives to close the door; meantime we are left with the only option to follow sops and trust the numbers coming from our ACARS printer.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: A B767 Captain expressed concern about a Company SOP encouraging flight crews to accept the ACARS final weight and balance as correct when he received a inaccurate report. Ground crews are pressured for on time departures and may ignore safety aspects.

Narrative: After observing a very chaotic boarding and before the purser gave us the 'cabin is ready' announcement we were also informed that the plane was completed full. We pushed back and initiated our taxing to the active runway; upon receiving the final weight manifest we discovered that load planning computed the final numbers with a load eleven people short of the full load actually on board. We proceeded to send a message to load planning with the correct numbers since a few individuals made us aware at the gate that we had a full plane. Then it took 25 minutes at the penalty box for load planning to send us the corrected numbers. The difference on the takeoff gross weight turned out to be 2480 LBS. The rest of the flight was uneventful. I am deeply concerned that we are following SOP by trusting the final numbers coming from the printer when now it is evident that someone failed to provide load planning with the 'final picture'. After our arrival; I called both the Dispatcher and the load-planning Supervisor. I was informed that an investigation was initiated not only by departure station Customer Service Department but also by load planning management over flight this flights handling. I truly believe SAFETY is compromised in the name of 'on time departure'; too much pressure it is on the Customer Service Representatives to close the door; meantime we are left with the only option to follow SOPs and trust the numbers coming from our ACARS printer.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.