Originally Posted by Gulfstreamaviator
the ATC clearance which will NEVER include a step climb
Once upon a time they might have done. A "conditional" or "automatic", climb was a technique used until fairly recently at Shanwick; a step climb being included as part of the Oceanic clearance.
Shanwick stopped using this technique however as there were too many instances where confusion resulted in crews commencing step climbs at inappropriate points/times - resulting in a blizzard of paperwork for all concerned...
I believe that New York Oceanic may still use this procedure.