ACR X REFUSED CLRNC FOR WX AVOIDANCE.

Narrative

THERE WERE LINES OF TSTMS IN THE ATL AREA WITH WARNINGS; ETC. ON OUR TAXI OUT ACR X SAW A LINE RUNNING ROUGHLY E/W JUST S OF THE ARPT; LESS THAN 20 NM. WE HAD NO INTEREST IN ITS EASTERN EDGE AS DEPS WERE WESTERLY AND OUR DEST WAS S OF ATL. WE COULD SEE A DEFINITE END TO THE WX 50 NM SW OF ATL AND HAD DISCUSSED THAT PLAN TO AVOID THE LINE; WHICH LOOKED SOLID ON THE ACFT RADAR WITH LARGE RED ECHOES AND VISUALLY WE SAW CLOUD TO GND LIGHTENING. TKOF CLRNC WAS RECEIVED WITH A 250 DEG HDG AT THE MM. AFTER THE TURN AND SWITCH TO DEP CTL; X ASKED FOR 10 DEGS L TO AVOID AN ISOLATED CELL; AND LATER 10 DEGS MORE L. THE RESPONSE TO THAT REQUEST WAS TO COME ALL THE WAY AROUND TO 160 DEGS. SINCE THE LINE HAD LOOKED SOLID PRIOR TO TKOF WE REJECTED THE TURN. DEP SAID THAT HE HAD 6 ACFT GOING THROUGH A HOLE WITH NO PROBS. WE TURNED; AND ON ROLL OUT I COULD NOT SEE ANY WAY THROUGH THE LINE FREE OF 'RED' CONTOUR. WE ASKED TO TURN BACK W AND WERE TOLD 'NO.' WE PROTESTED AND WERE TOLD THE HOLE WAS 10 NM WIDE. WE WERE TOLD TO TURN FURTHER L TO 130 DEGS WHICH ALSO LOOKED BAD ON OUR SCOPE AND AGAIN REQUESTED A TURN W; WHICH WAS DECLINED. I THEN TOOK THE MIKE AND ASKED IF I WOULD HAVE TO DECLARE AN EMER TO GET THE TURN W. A DIFFERENT VOICE CLRED US TO TURN TO 270 DEGS. OUR FLT REMAINED CLR OF CLOUDS; TURB; AND WENT 50 NM SW OF ATL AS WE HAD INITIALLY PLANNED. LATER ZTL ASKED IF OUR EMER WAS OVER. I TOLD THEM THAT WE HAD NOT DECLARED AN EMER; BUT HAD ASKED IF THAT WOULD BE REQUIRED TO GET A VECTOR CLR OF WX. IT WAS NOT INTENDED AS A THREAT; BUT A QUERY AS TO WHAT WAS NEEDED TO GET OUR TURN. LASTLY; A 10 MI HOLD MAY LOOK LARGE ON A GND BASED SLOPE; BUT THAT PUTS THE ACFT WITHIN 5 NM OF SEVERE WX. THE DYNAMICS OF TSTMS DO NOT ALLOW US THAT OPTION.