A319
Other Load Planner
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Weight And Balance
Company Policy; Human Factors; Procedure
I was in the process of planning this flight. There were 2 carts of mail planned. One was 56 pieces at 1;015 lbs; the other was 55 pieces at 962 lbs. The ZZZ ops agent called; asking to put both items in Pit 4. I advised the ops agent that both items would not fit in Pit 4. I advised him that Pit 4 does not go all the way up to the door on the A319; as it does on the A320. Therefore; both mail items would not fit. The ops agent said 'ok; we'll split them then.' I finished planning the flight. I put the 1015 lbs of mail in Pit 4 with 27 bags planned. The 962 lbs item I put in Pit 6.This is a daily call from ZZZ. They want to put a large amount of mail in Pit 4; sometimes with some bags. This indicates to me that there is a lack of knowledge there about the A319. Despite many communications to the field; some locations do not 'get it'. By 'it'; I mean the fact the Pit 4 on the A319 is very small. When I worked the ramp (1989-2015); I did notice that the nets on the A319 were often moved around so that Pit 4 and Pit 5 were combined. Now that I work load planning; I see the hazard of doing this. The pit limits can be exceeded when the pits are 'creatively combined' in this fashion. Plus; we aren't providing accurate balance to the flight crews when we send final weights.The 'new' philosophy seems to be 'let's give the ramp some flexibility' and 'control' over the loading process. Sounds great as a slogan; but lack of knowledge (or overconfidence in supposed knowledge) such as this will continue to create safety concerns in the future. Getting the mean; old; inflexible load planners out of the process may create a 'feel good' atmosphere on the ramp; but in no way adds to safety. ZZZ is hardly the only station with the misplaced belief that Pit 4 on an A319 is a large pit and can accommodate heavy loads. I'm not accusing ZZZ of moving the nets; but the unshakable belief in a large Pit 4 is based on the 'culture' of moving the nets.
Air carrier Load Planner reported confusion and nonstandard procedures being used by ramp employees while loading cargo.