[audio:http://wamcradio.org/EarthWise/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/EW-07-17-13-Air-Strikes.mp3|titles=EW 07-17-13 Air Strikes]
When we took to the air with our metal machines over a hundred years ago, the skies weren’t empty. They were full of birds. Orville Wright holds the distinction of being the first pilot to record a bird strike in 1905. Such incidents are now commonplace.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration, over the past twenty years wildlife/aircraft collisions have increased five-fold. In 2011 there were 9,840 strikes, or around 27 a day. Many airports are near water, on the fringes of urban centers, making them attractive to birds. Strikes with geese are especially dangerous, as they can become ensnared in engines.
Most of us remember the “Miracle on the Hudson” in 2009, when an airplane departing New York’s LaGuardia Airport struck a flock of Canada geese, disabling its engines. Thankfully, pilot Sully Sullenberger safely landed his plane on the river.
By FAA estimates, 12-15% of bird strikes result in aircraft damage, causing 600,000 hours of downtime and $625 million in damages each year. Adding to the problem, the Canada goose population has grown from 1 million to 4 million animals in less than two decades. At the same time, air travel is increasing and planes are getting quieter.
Safety efforts include modifying airport grounds so they are unattractive to waterfowl and using predator calls to disperse birds. In extreme situations, geese have even been culled. A recent USDA study on bird strikes reports an increasing number are at high altitudes, highlighting the need for better bird-detecting radar and aircraft features that deter birds.
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Web Links
Audit: FAA ineffective in program to keep animals from hitting planes
http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/23/travel/faa-wildlife-hazards
Photo, taken on July 18, 2008, courtesy of Ian Mynard via Flickr.
Earth Wise is a production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Support for Earth Wise comes from the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY.