Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP)
Situational Awareness; Communication Breakdown; Distraction
ATC Issue All Types; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Clearance; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy
Flight Crew Requested ATC Assistance / Clarification
Procedure; Human Factors
After receiving our closeout; Ground was contacted. Ground advised taxi via Taxiway C to V. During our taxi a new revised closeout was received and the First Officer went line by line to compare the two closeouts. There was no change from the first. I taxied the aircraft on C and held short of B1 on Taxiway C. The Tower Controller called and said to taxi up to Runway 25R. The First Officer responded that we were not ready (we still had to complete the taxi checklist). The Tower Controller advised us to taxi to B1 and hold short Runway 25R. The First Officer replied we were unable to depart from B1 due to weight. I told the First Officer to advise the Tower Controller we were ready because I knew it would take us 30 seconds to taxi from our position on Taxiway C to get to the runway and we could easily accomplish the taxi checklist during this time. The First Officer replied to the Tower that we were ready for takeoff and the Tower Controller stated; 'You better not be lying to me;' and then cleared us for takeoff. I told the controller to note the time of this and the controller said the supervisor was right there. I told the controller I did not appreciate the threat and then the First Officer and I completed the taxi checklist and took off on Runway 25R.I have never in [all] my years of flying with [Company] received a threat from an Air Traffic Controller. I consider this unprofessional communication and I hope this type of communication is not considered 'normal' at the LAS tower. Additionally; flying out of LAS during the summer months is a challenge because of the high temperatures that result in weight restricted aircraft. The winds can be quite variable and have a significant impact on runway limited weight. To add unprofessional controller communication to this mix simply adds to the difficulty of safely flying out LAS.
Air carrier Captain reported communication issues with LAS Tower Control during taxi out.