B737-500 FLT CREW FAIL TO RECOGNIZE REVISED PORTION OF PDC REQUIRED USE OF THE ADM TRANSITION VICE DIRECT ON THE LEONA DEP FROM IAH.

Narrative

INITIALLY CLRED LEONA 5 DEP (LOA.LOA) WITH CQY TRANSITION; DIRECT ADM. PDC REVISED SEGMENT: 'LOA5 ADM.' BOTH PLTS AGREED THAT ADM WAS ON THE ORIGINAL ROUTING; SO NO CHANGE IN ROUTING WAS REQUIRED. ON DEP; ATC ASKED IF WE WERE GOING DIRECT DOLEY INTXN (WHICH IS ON THE ADM TRANSITION. WE RESPONDED THAT WE WERE GOING TO CQY THEN ADM AS FILED PER FLT PLAN. ATC THEN CLRED US DIRECT ADM. LOOKING AT THE PDC IT WAS NOT CLR TO EITHER OF US; THAT 'LOA5 ADM' REQUIRED US TO FLY THE ADM TRANSITION WHEN ADM ALREADY WAS ON OUR FLT PLAN. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THE RPTR ADVISED THAT ALTHOUGH HE HAD NOT RETAINED THE ACTUAL PRINTOUT; THE FORMAT OF THE PDC WAS PRECISELY AS SHOWN IN THE NARRATIVE. HE EXPLAINED THAT HE MADE A SPECIAL EFFORT TO REPRODUCE IT EXACTLY. HE MENTIONED THAT ALTHOUGH HE HAD; IN HIS NARRATIVE; DESCRIBED THE ORIGINAL CLRNC AS INDICATING A 'CQY TRANSITION' HE HAD WRITTEN THAT BASED ON HIS INITIAL UNDERSTANDING WHEN ADVISED HE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE FLYING THE ADM TRANSITION AND ASSUMING; THEREFORE; THE PDC USE OF THE SPACE FOLLOWING THE SID NAME INDICATED A TRANSITION. UPON LATER REVIEW HE REALIZED THAT THERE IS; IN FACT; NO CQY TRANSITION AND THAT THE PRESENTATION INTENDED ONLY THAT THEY FLY DIRECT TO CQY AND THEN DIRECT TO ADM. AS A RESULT; HE NOW WONDERS HOW HE IS TO DETERMINE WHETHER A CLRNC PDC PRINTOUT EXPECTS A TRANSITION OR A DIRECT ROUTING. HE WAS STRONGLY IN FAVOR OF USING PLAIN LANGUAGE TO IDENT A TRANSITION.