Commercial Fixed Wing
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 50; Flight Crew Type 2650
Communication Breakdown
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter Weather / Turbulence
Company Policy; Weather; Human Factors
The Captain and I realized our planned route was going to take us directly into a long front of thunderstorms. We called Dispatch to change the flight plan to circumvent the storm. Dispatch seemed lazy and uninterested in our request. The Captain was able to convince Dispatch to file an alternate route and asked Dispatch if they needed to call ATC to coordinate. Apparently; they did not.It was night; with decreased flying from COVID-19. There's no congestion that would have prevented Company Dispatch and Clearance Delivery to plan us a safe route. We received a second Release with a revised flight plan. I called Clearance. Clearance said I had two flight plans filed and read back the route of the original Release. I told him that was the wrong one and Clearance Delivery replied with; 'Read back correct.' He didn't listen or care. I called again and asked for my new routing. Before I could finish speaking; clearance began talking; so I didn't hear the first part of what he said. It was basically; we can't do it.My Captain called clearance and asked again. Clearance said we could contact our Dispatch to refile. Clearance Delivery was being extremely unhelpful; unprofessional; and began introducing confusion into our flight planning. We had to call again to confirm our legal routing (the one that takes us into the thunderstorm). Not long after we took off; ATC cleared us around the storm; basically along the path we had requested. As we flew; we could see our planned route would have taken us right into the storm. Company Dispatch needs to file flight plans that do not needlessly take us into thunderstorms. We need to have a Release that plans for what we're going to fly. We need to begin on the right flight plan and not have to request and hope we'll get a safe routing later. Clearance Delivery needs to communicate with pilots.
Air carrier Captain reported the difficulties experienced with Dispatch and Clearance Delivery as they requested an alternate route to avoid thunderstorms.