Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Workload; Confusion
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation - Track / Heading All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Inflight Event / Encounter Fuel Issue; Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence
Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Flight Crew FLC complied w / Automation / Advisory
Procedure; Weather
I am filling out this form due to a possible pilot deviation call we received from ATC on our change of destination. We were on an IFR flight plan originating from home station. A line of storms stretching from [across the coast]; was preventing departure clearance from clearing us IFR through normal routing to our destination; as all the gates were closed. We were told the only IFR option was at low altitude. To make this possible we contacted our flight follower through ARINC and proposed a flight plan to a mid-Atlantic airport using the escape route and also filed another flight plan. This was in hopes of flying south to get around the storms to the west and finally proceeding to our final destination. We were under the impression that this was the only way to get out of the departure airport without waiting possibly 3-5 hours for the storms to pass. We were able to pick up the clearance south and flew the escape route and once we got to the point where there was a gap in the storms (further south) we requested a change of destination to a Midwest airport. Center then handed us off to approach who accommodated our request; after first being assured that we did indeed have a flight plan on file. Approach cleared us through to our intermediate fuel stop and gave us a climb to FL230. Passing approximately FL200; Approach informed us Center wouldn't be able to take us and gave us a right 90 degree turn. Approximately 30 degrees into the turn Approach told us that Center did take the handoff and turned us back left on course. We were eventually handed off to Center. We were given a new altitude of FL340 and were climbing from FL230-340 when we received a call from Center to copy down a number for possible pilot deviation. We were quite surprised by this call and were in communication with our company aircraft who had accomplished the same change of destination about 5-10 minutes ahead of us and had received the same possible deviation call from ATC. They headed on uneventfully to our destination and we made a fuel stop and then onto our final destination; where we completed our flying for the day. Once on the ground; we called ATC on the number; and were told no need for further explanation; that they were in contact with another pilot on the aircraft ahead of us; who could explain the issue. We were told by our colleague in the other aircraft that there were no flight deviations or regulatory breaches but that we had a created an undue workload and upset the normal operations of Center on a busy day with convective weather complications.
[Report narrative contained no additional information.]
A corporate flight crew reported ATC would not issue an IFR clearance because weather had closed all desired IFR gateways. The crew elected to deviate and continue; their actions disrupted ATC operations.