Steps to determine the proper SID to assign:
- Use the flow chart to determine the proper SID based off of the aircraft type, route, and JFK configuration (click to enlarge).
- Refer to the tabs to determine the proper climb, initial altitude, and/or transition to assign to the aircraft, if appropriate.
- If a climb procedure is needed, issue the heading/climb/transition as part of the clearance. For example:
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to (clearance limit), Kennedy(version #) Departure, except fly runway heading to the Kennedy 1.5 DME, then turn right heading 100, radar vectors (exit); then as filed..

Climb Procedures
Departure Runway
|
Arrival Runway
|
Departure Procedures
|
Conditions
|
Aircraft Types
|
Gates
|
Climb Procedure Phraseology
|
| 4L
|
4R
|
All
|
All
|
All
|
All
|
Except fly runway heading to the Kennedy 1.5 DME, then turn right heading 100
|
| 13L/R
|
All
|
All
|
All
|
All
|
All
|
Heading (heading from table)
|
| 22L/R
|
Not 13L/R
|
JFK#
|
Between the hours of 2300 and 0700 local time
|
All
|
All
|
Gateway Climb
|
| 31L/R
|
All
|
JFK#
|
All
|
Jets
|
Southwest
|
Breezy Point Climb
|
| Other
|
Canarsie Climb
|
| Props
|
Southwest
|
Breezy Point Climb
|
| Other
|
Canarsie Climb
|
Runway 13L/R Headings
| Conditions
|
Aircraft Types
|
Gates
|
Heading
|
| Normal Operations
|
Props
|
North, East
|
090
|
| Jets
|
North, East
|
110
|
| All
|
HAPIE, BETTE
|
155
|
| SHIPP, WAVEY
|
170
|
| Southwest
|
185
|
| Between the hours of 2300 and 0700 local time
|
All
|
All
|
185
|
| Overflow 22L
|
Props
|
North, East
|
140
|
| Jets
|
North, East
|
155
|
| All
|
HAPIE, BETTE
|
155
|
| SHIPP, WAVEY
|
170
|
| Southwest
|
185
|
| Overflow 4R
|
Props
|
North, East
|
070
|
| Jets
|
North, East
|
090
|
| All
|
Other
|
110
|
| ILS 13L in use
|
Props
|
North, East
|
140
|
| Jets
|
North, East
|
155
|
| All
|
HAPIE, BETTE
|
155
|
| SHIPP, WAVEY
|
170
|
| Southwest
|
185
|
Notes
- If a pilot cannot accept a SID, they should not be assigned a climb. Tower will manually issue the instructions with the takeoff clearance.
- If a configuration is missing, it means no climb assignment is necessary (can be omitted entirely from clearance). Be careful – there might still be a transition needed. Refer to the individual SID tabs to determine this.
- The Idlewild Climb cannot be assigned under any conditions if LaGuardia is landing LOC 31. Use the Canarsie Climb or SKORR# departure instead.
- Charts say the Gateway Climb should be assigned after 2200 local, not 2300 local. 2300 local is the correct time – use it as the cutoff when 22R is active.
- When operating ILS 13L between the hours of 2300 and 0700 local time, the ILS 13L headings shall take priority.
- Table applies to intersection departures and/or overflow operations.
Examples:
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to Washington National Airport, Kennedy# Departure, Breezy Point Climb, radar vectors Robbinsville, then as filed..
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to Nantucket Airport, Kennedy# Departure, Idlewild Climb, radar vectors Bridgeport, then as filed..
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to Miami International Airport, Kennedy# Departure, Gateway Climb, radar vectors WAVEY, then as filed..
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to Boston Logan Airport, Kennedy# Departure, except fly runway heading to the Kennedy 1.5 DME, then turn right heading 100, radar vectors MERIT, then as filed..
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to Chicago Midway Airport, DEEZZ# Departure, CANDR transition, heading 110, radar vectors DEEZZ, then as filed..
The initial altitude for all IFR departures is 5,000’ except for Idlewild climb departures which is 2,000’. Some procedures and climbs have crossing restrictions. Please see the following table for a summary of proper initial altitude phraseology:
| Departure Procedure
|
Configuration
|
Initial Altitude Phraseology
|
| JFK#
|
Breezy Point Climb
|
Climb via SID
|
| Canarsie Climb
|
Climb via SID
|
| Idlewild Climb
|
Maintain 2000
|
| Other
|
Maintain 5000
|
| SKORR#
|
All
|
Climb via SID
|
| DEEZZ#
|
31 L/R
|
Climb via SID
|
| Other
|
Maintain 5000
|
The standard Departure Procedure for JFK is the JFK# Departure (pronounced Kennedy (Version #), such as Kennedy Five), except for RNAV departures from Runways 31L/R where SKORR# is the standard Departure Procedure. It should always be assigned, unless the pilot indicates not possessing charts, in which case no DP should be assigned and the pilot should be cleared to their destination via radar vectors to a proper JFK exit.
Climb procedures are used when departing runways 31L/R and runway 22R. Climbs are pilot navigated courses flown from wheels up to 5,000’ or 2,000’, depending on the climb procedure. The primary objective of using climbs at JFK is to keep the departure traffic flows separated from other New York area airports including EWR and LGA. The climbs are assigned by controllers depending on the current runway configuration, type of aircraft, departure exit, and traffic demand. For more information on climbs, reference the Climb Procedures tab on the left.
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to (clearance limit), Kennedy(Version #) Departure, (climb procedure as applicable), radar vectors (exit); then, as filed..
Off of runways 31L/R, some climbs have published altitude restrictions, meaning Climb via SID must be included in the clearance. On other configurations, no such restrictions exist. For more information, please refer to the usage of climb via SID in FAA Order JO 7110.65 para 4-3-2 and Climb via SID Phraseology SOP.
| Airway
|
Transition
|
| J60
|
CANDR J60
|
| J64
|
CANDR J60 DANNR RAV J64
|
| Q480
|
CANDR Q480
|
| J42
|
CANDR Q480 SPOTZ Q42
|
| J6
|
TOWIN J6 (TMU only)
|
This DP is only used for RNAV equipped turbojet aircraft that are filed for J60, J64, Q480, Q42, or J6 (with a destination located south of the Potomac TRACON or to Cleveland-Hopkins International [KCLE] or Midway [KMDW]). Non-RNAV turbojet departures filed J6 (with a destination located south of the Potomac TRACON or to Cleveland-Hopkins International [KCLE] or Midway [KMDW]) should be routed via RBV SAAME J6.
The DEEZZ# has required climb instructions off of runways 4L and 13L/R - see the Climb Procedures tab for more information.
Note about J6: The DEEZZ# is only assigned to aircraft routed to J6 under the following conditions:
- A heavy flow of traffic simultaneously going to RBV
- Dangerous and/or severe weather in the vicinity of RBV Q430 SAAME (SWAP in effect, see appendix for more information).
TMU makes the final decision regarding J6 reroutes. Unless told otherwise by TMU, and during normal operations, the pilot should be routed via RBV Q430 SAAME J6 ...
This DP has two transitions: CANDR (which is on both J60 and Q480) and TOWIN (which is on J6). Aircraft should be routed to the appropriate transition, and route string if needed, according to the table on the right.
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to (clearance limit), DEEZZ (Version #) Departure, (CANDR or TOWIN) transition, (climb procedure as applicable), radar vectors DEEZZ, then as filed..
Off of runways 31L/R, the DEEZZ# has published altitude restrictions, meaning Climb via SID must be included in the clearance. On other configurations, no such restrictions exist. For more information, please refer to the usage of climb via SID in FAA Order JO 7110.65 para 4-3-2 and Climb via SID Phraseology SOP.
| Gate
|
Transition
|
| Southwest
|
RNGRR
|
| Other
|
YNKEE
|
This DP is the standard Departure Procedure for RNAV equipped aircraft departing runway 31L/R. If other runways are in use, then replace SKORR# with JFK#. The transitions on the SKORR# are equivalent to the climbs on other DPs.
The SKORR# does not have any climb instructions that need to be issued. Instead, this DP has two transitions: RNGRR (pronounced Ranger) and YNKEE (pronounced Yankee). Aircraft should be routed to the appropriate transition according to the table on the right.
PHRASEOLOGY
Cleared to (destination), SKORR (Version #) departure, (YNKEE or RNGRR) transition, radar vectors (exit), then as filed.....
Because this departure procedure has published altitude restrictions, the phrase "climb via SID" must be included in the IFR clearance, as explained in FAA Order JO 7110.65 para 4-5-7.The Concorde was a special aircraft capable of supersonic transport (SST) with special performance characteristics. The two SST operators, British Airways (BAW) and Air France (AFR), had a special letter of agreement with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to conduct operations at JFK. Although the Concorde does not fly in the real world, Concorde traffic is quite frequent at JFK on VATSIM.
Add the phrase "Concorde" after the telephony name of the company for British Airways aircraft, and add the "heavy" suffix to the end of the callsign. Examples are:
- BAW1 = “Speedbird Concorde One (Heavy)”
- AFR1 = "Air France One (Heavy)"
- "Concorde" is not included in the callsign because only British Airways has "Concorde" included in the callsign.
Concorde pilots file a flight plan that looks like this:
- N0560F290 DCT C/SHIPP/M200F430F600 DCT LINND 3SN 4025N06700W NATSN 4941N01500W SL3 DECEL/M100F390 SL3 BARIX SL3 PITEM UP2 NIGIT OCK2F
It seems complicated but we only care about two things: the filed exit and altitude. Concorde should be assigned the JFK# departure procedure. The exit is SHIPP in almost 99% of the time. If the departure runway at JFK is 31L, Concordes will fly the Canarsie climb.
If you look at the cruise flight level in VRC, most of the time you'll see FL600. Do not clear them to FL600, however, because this is the upper limit of supersonic block altitude. The Concorde will maintain a much lower flight level until they reach the supersonic acceleration point. The altitude Clearance Delivery controllers are concerned with is this lower altitude. In the route section of the flight plan notice “N0560F290.” This is the ICAO format for saying that initially the planned altitude is FL290 and the TAS will be 560 knots. In this case, clear them to flight level 290.
PHRASEOLOGY
Speedbird Concorde One, Kennedy Clearance Delivery, cleared to London Heathrow Airport, Kennedy (Version #) departure, (Climb if Appropriate), radar vectors SHIPP, then as filed. (Climb via SID or Maintain fife thousand), expect flight-level two niner zero one-zero minutes after departure, departure frequency one tree fife point niner, squawk (code).