chugalug, much of what you say is true. However, don't forget that the aircraft captain is often very busy during the management of delays. Is it unreasonable for him/her to delegate passenger liaison to those responsible for looking after the passengers in the 'air terminal'?
Those who lie and blame the cause of the delay on others are utterly reprehensible; I was once told that my delayed passengers would be accommodated in barracks when the inbound flight was so late that there wasn't enough duty time to get them back that day (only 30 min spare on the original schedule and the inbound was well over 90 min late - our task was the usual unreasonably tight max CDT Calgary-Gander-Brize which didn't even allow for adequate turnround time at Gander). However, I hadn't been told the truth - the passengers looked very hacked off the next day, but it was only some days after we'd returned home that the truth made its way out - the movements unit had made them all spend the night on the airport floor. Their brigadier was, understandably, very cross. Fortunately I was backed up totally - and Ascot Ops was given a total savaging by the Stn for being so completely incompetent about sorting out the necessary itinerary change when they knew full well that the flight was late out of Brize. Their alleged officers had done bugger all - it was left to a WO and myself to come up with a sensible plot after we'd waded through the impossibly complex CDT/CRP regulations. When I asked them why they hadn't sent me a 'REVITIN', they claimed that they didn't know the flight had been delayed. "So why do we bother sending you those damn departure messages, then?" was my counter. The outbound captain had cut every corner he could, flown as fast as he could and negotiated every direct routeing he could, but no way could he catch up sufficient time to make my flight itinerary in any way legal. Did Ascot Ops really expect me to turn up at Gander at midnight local and ask for 180 hotel rooms?
The better airlines use their best people in scheduling; my experience of the RAF was that the no-hopers and bad boys who couldn't give a stuff were sent to Ascot Ops. My perception, possibly incorrect of course.
The back-up support to AT operations was woeful in my last few years in the RAF and getting worse. Impossible itineraries which gave no time for the turnround time mandated by Gp engineers, understaffing and overstretch everywhere. I doubt that it's any better now.
I have received a PM from an 'undervalued mover' at the Covert Oxonian Airbase. Not only are the disgusting lavatories still in need of repair, but even the check-in desks are faulty and in need of repair. The movers are forever dealing with people being posted away just as they are getting settled into the job - and are as overstretched as everyone else. When some aged old AT aircraft years past its sell-by date breaks down yet again, they have to try to keep going and look after all the passengers requirements even though they might have been on duty all day - because there's probably no-one else available to take over.
Yet the MoD continues to pour money down the pointless EuropHoon and Nimrod Y2K black holes of defence spending to the total detriment of those poor sods who have to travel in 30-40 year old museum pieces supported by overstretched and under-resourced infrastructure staff - and engineers whose skill with bodge tape is the only thing keeping some of the creaking old wrecks flying.