RPT DETAILS AN ALLEGEDLY COMMON SITUATION WHEREIN DISPATCHERS; LOAD PLANNERS ARE FRUSTRATED WITH COMPUTER SOFTWARE; COMPANY RADIO COMS; AND INSUFFICIENTLY TRAINED PERSONNEL. IN THIS CASE RESULTING IN THE DISPATCH OF AN SF340 WITH KNOWN LOAD PLANNING DISCREPANCIES.

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GND PERSONNEL BECAME FRUSTRATED WITH THE SOFTWARE APPLICATION USED TO MANAGE ACFT LOADS. THE PAX COUNT FOR THIS TRIP HAD CHANGED BY 1 -- INCREASING FROM 5 PAX TO 6 PAX; BUT THEY WERE UNABLE TO GET THE COMPUTER TO TAKE THE UPDATE. RATHER THAN DELAY THE FLT; THEY ELECTED TO KEEP THIS INFO FROM THE FLT CREW. I LEARNED ABOUT THIS SITUATION WHEN THE LOAD CTLR WHO HAD SIGNED INTO THE FLT INFORMED ME OF THE SITUATION -- I THEN ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT THE FLT CREW WITH THE REVISED 'FINAL NUMBERS;' WHICH INCLUDED THE NEW TKOF GROSS AND PERCENT MAC CALCULATIONS. AT THIS POINT; THE FLT WAS IN THE AIR. USING THE COMPANY FREQ; I TRIED TO RADIO THE CREW. THEY DID NOT ACKNOWLEDGE MY XMISSIONS. I ENCOURAGED THE LOAD CTLR TO RPT THIS INCIDENT VIA THE COMPANY PROC FOR MISLOADING ACFT. WHILE THIS SPECIFIC LOADING DID NOT POSE ANY PRACTICAL THREAT TO SAFETY OF FLT; THE ACFT TYPE IN QUESTION HERE OFTEN BECOMES 'BAL CRITICAL' WITH VERY LIGHT LOADS AND OUR LOAD CTLRS GENERALLY GIVE THESE SITUATIONS ADDITIONAL SCRUTINY FOR THAT VERY REASON. PROBABLY THE KEY FACTOR INVOLVED IN THIS VERY REPRESENTATIVE TYPE INCIDENT IS INSUFFICIENT TRAINING AND INDOCTRINATION OF STATION PERSONNEL IN BOTH LOADING PROCS AND THE POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES OF MISLOADING AN ACFT. IN ADDITION; WIDESPREAD PROBS WITH COMPANY RADIO FACILITIES MAY BE BREEDING A SENSE OF FUTILITY REGARDING ATTEMPTS TO COMMUNICATE WITH CREWS ONCE THEY ARE ABOARD THEIR RESPECTIVE ACFT. THE COMPANY HAS MADE CONSIDERABLE PROGRESS IN THIS AREA SINCE INSTITUTING A RIGOROUSLY IMPROVED LOAD MGMNT SYS. THE BACKBONE OF THIS APCH IS LOAD CTL; WHICH IS CO-LOCATED WITH DISPATCH IN OUR SYS OPS CTR AND MANNED BY ASSISTANT DISPATCHERS SPECIFICALLY TRAINED IN THE USE OF OUR LOAD MGMNT SOFTWARE AND DEDICATED EXCLUSIVELY TO LOAD PLANNING. HOWEVER; AS A COST-CUTTING MEASURE; OUR AIRLINE HAS ANNOUNCED ITS INTENTION TO DISMANTLE LOAD CTL; LAY OFF THE ASSISTANT DISPATCHERS; AND MAKE LOAD MGMNT PART OF THE DISPATCHER'S FUNCTION - IN ESSENCE; RETURNING TO AN APCH DEMONSTRABLY FRAUGHT WITH INCREASED RISKS. A COMS AUDIT -- DESIGNED TO IDENT; ISOLATE; AND HOPEFULLY CORRECT CRITICAL RADIO PROBS -- IS UNDERWAY AT THIS TIME.