B737 Undifferentiated or Other Model
Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Communication Breakdown; Confusion
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation - Track / Heading All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Air Traffic Control Issued Advisory / Alert; Air Traffic Control Issued New Clearance; Flight Crew Returned To Clearance; Flight Crew Became Reoriented
Airspace Structure; Human Factors; Procedure
We received the following clearance on the ground from Dover Clearance Delivery: Flight XXX is cleared via runway heading then vectors to BAL MORTI LITME HIRCK SCRAM WALCE LYH then as filed; on departure climb to 3000 expect FL360 10 minutes after. Departure frequency 132.42; squawk ABCD. After we entered the route of flight on FMC; we noticed the point MORTI will take us 50 miles north of our route. Captain told me we will query departure control after airborne. During climb out we were cleared direct BAL. The captain asked Potomac Departure on 2 different frequencies while we were heading towards BAL; if they want us to go to that point MORTI that would take us 50 miles north of our path; and specifically told them that it seemed very unusual. The first controller told us he would try to take us over the outbound traffic. Then the second controller said that we needed to go to MORTI after BAL. After we reached BAL we started a turn toward MORTI. The controller asked us where we were going. We said MORTI and spelled out MORTI. The controller told us the correct spelling was MORTY. Captain corrected the point on the FMC and we corrected our course. The controller apologized for the confusion and the flight continued uneventfully. ATC controllers saw us going in the wrong direction. The event occurred because there are 2 points with similar names near each other and when we received the clearance the controller did not spell out the point. We suspected something was not right; we should have resolved it on the ground. When there is any question with the clearance; clarify with the clearance delivery on the ground.
B737 First Officer reported receiving a clearance on the ground via MORTI which caused a jog in the route of flight. The confusion was not corrected until the turn toward the fix attracted ATC's attention. The proper spelling for the fix was MORTY.