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Reagan National Airport. The bird created a 12-inch dent in the right wing and the pilot made an emergency landing at Dulles International Airport.
According to the FAA, there have been approximately 194,000 wildlife strikes between 1990 and 2017, with about 14,400 of them happening at 700 U.S. airports in 2017 alone. Other facts about bird strikes in the FAA’s most recent wildlife strike report:
• Most bird strikes occurred between July and October;
• Most occurred during the day but nearly one-third
occur at night;
• Most occurred during the landing phase, but 36 percent
occur during takeoff and climb;
• 92 percent of bird strikes occurred under 3,500 AGL.
However, there were 27 strikes with commercial aircraft
at altitudes of FL200 to FL310 from 1990 to 2017;
• The most damaged aircraft component also happens to
be the most expensive one: the engine;
• The economic loss from wildlife strikes totaled $765 mil-
lion for the period between 1990 to 2017;
• The bird most commonly struck are mourning doves;
waterfowl (ducks and geese) account for only 5 percent of strikes but are responsible for 28 percent of strikes that cause damage to the aircraft;
• Birds aren’t the only airport wildlife hazard. In 2018, the FAA received 40 reports of planes hitting coyotes and 24 involving deer;
• A 12-pound Canada goose struck by a 150-mph aircraft generates the force of a 1,000-pound weight dropped from a height of 10 feet.
According to the FAA, airport wildlife management that have been implemented since the 1990s has resulted in a general decline in reported strikes, but the agency said much work remains to be done to reduce strikes. Critically important is that the communities around airports must figure out how to minimize wildlife attractants within 5 miles of the runways. Also, the development of avian radar and bird migration fore- casting needs to be integrated into airspace management.
Finally, the FAA wants to hear from pilots when they encounter a bird strike, regardless of whether it caused damage or not. A problem that is not well-defined cannot be properly managed. If you experience a bird strike, go to www.wildlife.faa.gov/strikenew.aspx and fill out strike report.
As you fly, keep an eye out for those feathery fiends, even at higher transitory altitudes. As a precaution, consider keep- ing your landing light on when transiting below 10,000 feet, especially during migratory seasons. It only takes a second for a pleasant flight to turn eventful and very expensive. At the least, you could end up AOG (that’s “aircraft-on-goose” in our case). At worse, a bird strike could cause extensive dam- age and injury – something no one hopes to encounter.
Dianne White can be contacted at editor@diannewhite.com
SRS Aviation
April 2019 / TWIN & TURBINE • 5