SMT ON TRAINING FLT PENETRATED JFK TCA.

Narrative

WE WERE CONCLUDING A TRNING FLT. WE HAD FILED IFR TO MSV FROM MMU. WE WERE RETURNING VFR TO MMU SO WE COULD PRACTICE MANEUVERS--IE; STEEP TURNS; SLOW FLT. OUR LAST EXERCISE WAS TO LOCATE THE NEAREST ARPT; WHICH WAS GREENWOOD LAKE ARPT. THIS WAS DONE. WE CIRCLED THE ARPT; DSNDING TO BELOW 3000' MSL TO BE BELOW THE FLOOR OF THE TCA; AND CONTINUED IN A CRUISE DSCNT TO MMU. WE USED LORAN FOR A DIRECT HDG TO THE ARPT. THE GND VARIES IN HEIGHT; IS APPROX 1000' MSL WITH RIDGES AND OBSTRUCTIONS TO 1250' MSL. THE ACFT WAS LESS THAN 2000' AGL. APPROX 16 NM FROM MMU; WE SPOTTED A SMALL OBJECT AT OUR ALT--TYPE; DIRECTION AND INTENTIONS WERE UNCLEAR. WE WERE CAUTIOUS SINCE TRNING ACFT FROM 4 ARPTS UTILIZE THE AREA. WE SLOWED OUR RATE OF DSCNT AS WE IDENTIFIED THE OBJECT--A THERMALING HAWK-TYPE BIRD; AND ALLOWED THE ACFT TO DRIFT UPWARD ABOVE THE BIRD. SINCE STARTLED BIRDS DIVE; A DSCNT BELOW HIM WOULD HAVE PRESENTED A GREATER HAZARD. WE DRIFTED UPWARD TO 3040'; PRESENTING A POSSIBLE HAZARD TO ACFT BEING VECTORED AT THAT ALT AND PRESENTING A POSSIBLE INTRUSION INTO THE TCA. NO OTHER TFC WAS PRESENT IN THE AREA. IMMEDIATELY UPON PASSING THE BIRD; WE RESUMED A HIGHER RATE OF DSCNT TO BELOW 2000' MSL AND LANDED AT MMU. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS: CONCERN FOR SMALLER; SLOWER; TRNING ACFT KNOWN TO FREQUENT THE AREA. SURPRISE TO SEE A BIRD AT THAT ALT; THOUGH WE FELT THE PRESENCE OF THERMALS (THIS AREA IS A PATH FOR MIGRATING BIRDS); NORMALLY WE RETURN IFR OR UTILIZE RADAR SVC WHEN RETURNING TO MMU--HOWEVER SINCE WE PLANNED TO DEVIATE TO ANOTHER ARPT AS A TRNING EXERCISE; USE OF RADAR SVC WOULD HAVE BEEN IMPRACTICAL. FOR SHORT; QUICK LCL FLTS; IE; GREENWOOD LAKE TO MMU; RADAR SVC IS NOT PRACTICAL OR POSSIBLE DUE TO CTLR WORKLOAD AND RADIO CONGESTION. LACK OF AIRSPACE TO MANEUVER WITHIN--WE HAD LESS THAN 2000' BTWN THE GND AND THE FLOOR OF THE TCA--WE NEED EITHER MORE AIRSPACE OR FASTER CTLR RESPONSE TO OUR REQUEST FOR RADAR SVC.