I can tell you with certainty that Delta will dispatch and expect you to operate in excess of their recommended Xwind limits. They generally won't push you beyond the actual limits. Why they have the recommended limits I don't know. I asked them to remove them once and did not even get a answer. I did get a answer to what recommended means and was told that unless a greater safety issue is involved they should be observed. That means no operations in the fall in places like Paris for days at a time when you get heavy rains and winds 20 to 30 knots out of the south. If you point that out to dispatch they will tell you it's just a recommendation but not actually used.