A DHC-8 COMMUTER FLC CONFUSED THE DISPATCH RELEASE RTE WITH THE ATC CLRNC RTE. IN ERROR; THE DISPATCHED ROUTE WAS ENTERED INTO THE FMS (WITHOUT CLRNC XCHK) AND FOLLOWED BY THE CREW. CTLR INTERVENED.

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I WAS DOING ROE (REQUALIFYING OPS EXPERIENCE) WITH A FO RECALLED FROM FURLOUGH. WE HAD JUST COMPLETED THE ORIGINATING COCKPIT CHKLIST AND THE FO WAS STARTING TO FILL OUT THE NECESSARY PAPERWORK NEEDED PRIOR TO LEAVING THE GATE. IT WAS AN EARLY MORNING DEP AND THE FIRST TIME THE FO HAD ORIGINATED A FLT IN SEVERAL MONTHS. TO HELP EASE HIS WORK LOAD; I CALLED FOR AND RECEIVED THE ATC CLRNC FROM CLRNC DELIVERY. THEY GAVE US A FULL RTE CLRNC; BUT IT WAS THE SAME RTE WE HAD BEEN USING FOR YRS. WHEN THE GATE AGENT BROUGHT THE DISPATCH RELEASE TO THE FLT DECK; I CHKED ALL OF THE INFO; BUT FAILED TO INSURE THE RTE ON THE RELEASE WAS IN FACT THE SAME AS THE CLRNC. THE FO PROGRAMMED THE FMS AND COMPARED THE RTE ON THE RELEASE WITH THE FLT PLAN STORED IN THE FMS WHICH WERE EXACT. HOWEVER; WHEN THE DEP CREW BRIEFING WAS GIVEN; I READ BACK THE CLRNC I COPIED FROM CLRNC DELIVERY BUT DID NOT COMPARE IT WITH THE FMS RTE (MISTAKE #1). THE FIRST FIX ON THE FMS AND ON THE CLRNC WERE THE SAME; BUT THE RTE CHANGED AFTER THAT. A FEW MI AFTER THE FIRST FIX; ZBW ASKED WHAT RTE WE WERE ISSUED. I HAD THE RELEASE IN MY HAND AT THAT PARTICULAR MOMENT; SO I READ THE FILED RTE PRINTED ON IT (MISTAKE #2). ATC MADE NO FURTHER COMMENTS ABOUT OUR RTE AND ISSUED A FREQ CHANGE. UPON INITIAL CONTACT WITH THE NEW CTLR; I ASKED HIM FOR A RTE VERIFICATION AND HE SAID HE WAS SEATED NEXT TO THE CTLR WE HAD COMMUNICATED WITH ON THE PREVIOUS FREQ AND OUR FLT WAS CLRED VIA THE RTE I READ BACK TO HIM. SEVERAL LESSONS LEARNED THAT DAY...1) HAVE THE FMS ON LINE BEFORE THE CLRNC IS RECEIVED SO IT MAY BE COMPARED WITH THE STORED FILED FLT PLAN IMMEDIATELY. 2) MAINTAIN A HIGHER LEVEL OF SITUATIONAL AWARENESS. SUPPLEMENTAL INFO FROM ACN 303877: I FEEL THAT BECAUSE I WAS RETURNING TO LINE FLYING AFTER A 4 MONTH BREAK I DID NOT HAVE THE SITUATIONAL AWARENESS TO CATCH THE ERROR.