Matt Whiting wrote:
I know that clearance is required to enter class B, but IFR this was
taken care of. I assume that the approach controllers routinely issue
this clearance when your destination is field in their area, but I
wanted to be sure. My plan is to request the clearance if I have
received it prior to entering class B, but I'm wondering what the SOP is
these days for VFR into class B.

No different than it's always been.

En-route, call up approach 10 miles from the CBAS boundary (not a hard
and fast rule, but it helps to give the guy some warning). Tell him
exactly what you want to do:

"New York Approach, Archer 25629, Islip, 4500, request Class Bravo
along the south shoreline then up the Hudson to White Plains". He'll
either give you a squawk and a clearance, or say unable. If you call
up too far out, you may be talking to somebody in the wrong sector and
he'll just give you a squawk and ask you to make your request with the
next controller.

It's easier if you've already got flight following, because the guy
will already have a strip on you, you'll have a squawk, etc.

If I'm taking off from White Plains (under the 3000 foot ring of the
NY CBAS), I'll ask clearance delivery to get me a class bravo before I
even taxi. Usually, I'll get something like, "Remain clear of the
class bravo at or below 1500, squawk XXXX, departure frequency 126.4".
As soon as I take off, they'll turn be over to departure (who is
already expecting me) and I'll get my class bravo clearence from him.

That's how it's supposed to work. Now, here's how it can go wrong.
This happened to me a couple of months ago.

I did exactly as described above, called up departure, and got "Radar
contact, cleared into the Class Bravo, fly heading 270, climb and
maintain 4500, contact New York Approach on 127.6". Translated into
English, that means, "Here's your ticket kid, now go bother the guy
who's running approaches into Newark". Not surprisingly, I couldn't
get a word in edgewise on 127.6. So, here we are, chugging along on a
270 heading (not the direction I wanted to go) and can't even find
enough space on the freq to check in with the new controller. This
went on for a while until finally we hear, "callsign, descend below
the floor of the class bravo, radar services terminated, frequency
change approved".

Well gee, if you didn't want to work us, why did you accept the
handoff? Anyway, these things happen. Just stay on your toes, listen
up on the freq, and always have another plan in your back pocket.

Most of the time, the NY controllers are very accomodating. They may
be working the most complicated airspace in the universe, but they're
also the best controllers in the universe, so it works out.

I routinely get clearances to fly up or down the Hudson or the East
River at anywhere from 1500 to 6500, just for sightseeing. I'm much
happier in the CBAS at 1500 than on the CTAF at 1000. Hint, loop
around Manhattan clockwise (down the East River, up the Hudson) to
give your pax a better view. Counter-clockwise if you want the good
view for yourself. Best one I got was coming through northbound,
descending out of 7500 or some such. I wasn't getting down fast
enough to get under the LaGuardia arrivals, so the controller had us
to a right descending 360. The Empire State Building makes a really
nice pylon for turns around a point!