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Pigeon And Crows Population Control By Trapping, Ben (Ze'ev) Foux

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Feral pigeons (Columba Livia) are a safety problem all around the airdrome, as they fly in big, dense flocks crossing the runways. Pigeons are also one of the worst causes of foreign object damage in the hangars and are an environmental and health hazard. The hooded crow is found around runways in Israeli air-bases, due to the thick vegetation that can be found in the bases. Other methods for bird population control in use now involve either repulsing (glue, spikes, nets) or eliminating (poison, shooting). Trapping is an environmental friendly, cost-effective long term solution, with a history of thousands of …

The Interspecificity Of Distress Calls, A. T. Baxter, J. C. Bell, J. R. Allan, J. Fairclough

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

It is widely accepted that birds respond best to distress calls given by their own species. There is little information available however, which evaluates the effect of inter and intraspecific distress calls. During 1997 and 1998, distress calls from sub populations which are unfamiliar to local birds of the same species were assessed in Hong Kong and the U.K. Results were examined on a taxonomic basis. Response was found to be greater when con-specific calls were used. Response rates declined further as taxonomic relatedness decreased. Unlike other studies, distress calls of UK birds were effective on the same species in …

Derivation Of A Dummy Bird For Analysis And Test Of Airframe Structures, Chris H. Edge, J. Degrieck

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Certification of aircraft against the birdstrike threat is expensive and time consuming. With the need to reduce design life cycle time and costs with ever more complex structures (materials, geometries and manufacturing methods) yet with no reduction in safety, the possibilities of certification via generic analysis is an attractive proposition. This paper discusses one approach being considered within British Aerospace (BAe). It relies heavily on research activities that have derived extensive data for bird biometrics and innovative testing that can provide mechanical data for bird failure modes unique to military aircraft.

Whilst almost all birdstrike clearance is performed via testing …

The Perspectives Of The Air Line Pilots Association On Strikes Of Wildlife By Aircraft, Paul F. Eschenfelder

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Strikes of wildlife by aircraft cause thousands of life-threatening incidents, and hundreds of millions of dollars worth of damage to aircraft every year. This hazard is largely preventable, but it has not been properly addressed to date for a variety of reasons. ALPA believes that action should be taken now before a catastrophe occurs.

Collisions between aircraft and wildlife are increasing in frequency in North America due to growth in the number of migratory birds and other wildlife and the increased numbers of aircraft operations. This threat to human safety has manifested itself in several fatal strikes between aircraft and …

Does Tall Grass Reduce Bird Numbers On Airports?: Results Of Pen Test With Canada Geese And Field Trials At Two Airports, 1998, Thomas W. Seamans, Richard A. Dolbeer, Mark S. Carrara, Richard B. Chipman

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

A suggested management plan to reduce bird numbers and bird-aircraft collisions at airports is to maintain grass 15-25 cm high. However, 3 studies conducted in the United States in 1998 indicated tall-grass management may not result in fewer birds. First, Canada geese (Branta canadensis), in a replicated experiment lasting 9 days in 6 pens in Ohio, showed no preference (P = 0.53) for short-grass (4-11 cm) over tall-grass (16-21 cm) plots. Second, we compared bird use of 8 tall- (23.3 ± 0.5 cm high, x ± SE) and 8 short- (14.3 ± 0.2) grass plots totaling 46 ha at Burke …

Management Of The Yellow Bittern (Ixobrychus Sinensis) On Guam To Minimize Threats To Aviation Safety, Daniel S. Vice, Mikel E. Pitzler

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Wildlife-aircraft collisions caused an estimated $114 million of damage annually to civilian aviation aircraft in the United States between 1993 and 1995 (Cleary et al. 1996). Significant damage to aircraft and crashes may result from the ingestion of one small bird (Cleary et al. 1996). Collisions that do not cause physical damage to aircraft often result in costs related to aircraft downtime while structural inspections are completed. Despite heightened awareness of the hazards wildlife present to aircraft, strikes occur often and occasionally have catastrophic results. The yellow bittern (Ixobrychus sinensis) is a common breeding bird throughout the western Pacific. Yellow …

Bird Strike Risk Analysis On Aktion Airfield (Greece) And Recommendations For Improvements In Bird Strike Prevention, Heinrich Weitz

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

A survey of Aktion airfield in Greece was carried out from 14 to 18 October 1996 initiated by the Flight Safety Division of the NATO E-3A Component Geilenkirchen (Germany) as an reaction to the accident of an AWACS-aircraft on 14. July 1996, initially caused by a bird strike event. The survey of Aktion airfield led to the conclusion that the bird strike risk is extremely high at this airfield. Reasons are:
· The geographical location of the airfield at the Adriatic coast which is a migratory pathway for many birds.
· The location of the airfield on a narrow peninsula …

Feather Identification And A New Electronic System For Reporting Us Air Force Bird Strikes, Carla J. Dove

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

The number of bird strike cases received from U.S. Air Force bases for identification has increased from 640 in 1996 to more than 840 in 1998. The additional workload, together with staff shortages on the BASH team, created a need for a more efficient reporting system. Previously, all bird strike remains were funneled through the Safety Center at Kirtland Air Force Base where they were logged into a database, forwarded to the Smithsonian Institution for identification, and then sent back to Kirtland for data entry of results before being returned to field personnel. This system facilitated a bottleneck in the …

Radar To Detect Foreign Object Ingestion By A Jet Engine, Gene Greneker

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Each year commercial, private and military aircraft jet engines are damaged by the ingestion of foreign objects. Annual engine repair costs for ingestion damage is in the tens of millions of dollars. Bird strikes represent the major foreign object threat to aircraft engines, although large hail and objects found on the ramp can also damage an engine. A radar based foreign object ingestion detection system (FOIDS) concept, the subject of this paper, is capable of determining when an object as small as 4 millimeters has entered a fan jet engine. Additionally, such a system is capable of determining the relative …

Report On Recent Large Bird Ingestions Into Transport Turbofan Engines, Richard Parker

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Today I am going to give you a report on recent bird ingestion events into transport category turbofan engine in commercial service. We are still having these events. We may not ever completely eliminate all such events, but our purpose for meeting is to put all our resources to work to try. The events that I am going to report on today represent some of the more significant events over the last couple of years. The events are significant because of the potential for jeopardizing the safety of the aircraft involved and the aircraft occupants.

The events I am going …

The Need To Strengthen The Icao Provisions Relating To Bird Control On And In The Vicinity Of Airports, Alistair Pinos

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Bird strikes to aircraft are a threat the safety of aviation and as air traffic continues to grow, their numbers appear to be increasing,. In 1965 ICAO began to monitor bird strikes through the collection of bird strike reports as it became clear that the turbine engined aircraft coming into wider use were more susceptible to bird strike damage than their predecessors. This data collection became automated in 1980 with the creation of the ICAO Bird Strike Information System (IBIS), which now contains information on more than 80 000 bird strikes. When IBIS was created, it was thought that approximately …

Zero Bird-Strike Rate - An Achievable Target, Not A Pipedream, S. M. Satheesan

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

This paper explains how zero bird-strike rate can be achieved by any aerodrome by constant efforts and perseverance of a dedicated team as evidenced from the author’s experience on about 30 aerodromes in India. This paper stresses the importance of conducting survey of problem aerodromes every five years by an expert (Satheesan 1996c), necessity for employing an Ornithologist at every aerodrome, need for regular national-level training for bird-controllers (Satheesan, in press - b) and urgency for setting up Bird-strike Prevention Committees at national (interministerial) and airport levels. Bird strike rates were brought down to zero at the Trivandrum International Airport …

Evaluation Of Controlling Red-Tailed Hawks (Buteo Jamaicensis) Through Live Trapping And Relocation To Minimize Aircraft Strikes At Canadian Airports, Martin L. Wernaart, Terri L. Groh, Philip J. Roberts

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Central and Southwestern Ontario is one of the largest migratory flyways for raptors in North America. The expanse of airfields and prey availability make airfields attractive to migrating raptors, which may result in an increase in over wintering birds. These birds do not readily scare with conventional wildlife control methods and have high public profile. Even though the strike risk is moderate, raptors routinely make the top ten list for strikes from all bird species (8%) at Canadian Airports. The potential for damage from a collision with raptor species is high due to their size and weight. It has been …

An Assessment Of The World-Wide Risk To Aircraft From Large Flocking Birds, J. R. Allan, J. C. Bell, V. S. Jackson

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

The difficulties encountered in interpreting the available data, which arise from incomplete or inaccurate information being submitted, or from inconsistent reporting by national organisations, illustrate the importance of recording and reporting birdstrike incidents. Even allowing for the fact that birdstrikes with large birds, and especially those with flocks, are more likely to be reported, it is probable that the database established for this project contains only a fraction of the incidents that have actually occurred. Nevertheless, some broad conclusions can be drawn from the data available, and as more data are collected, predictions and estimates can be refined and the …

Recent Developments In The Use Of Flight Control To Repel Birds From Airports, Kenneth E. Ballinger Jr., Michael K. Gilmore, Rebecca W. Price

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Birds found at or near airport flight operations pose a threat to aircraft. There were 2843 reported bird strikes in the United States in 1997 and 837 reported bird strikes in Canada for the year 1998. Potential for loss of life and economic losses due to aircraft damage have driven the need for research into effective techniques in lowering the risk of bird strike in the immediate area of flight operations. Flight ControlÔ is a documented bird repellent. Flight ControlÔ was released commercially in January 1999 in the United States for use on turf, ornamental trees and bushes, building surfaces …

The Effects Of Changes In The Northern Lapwing Population On The Bird Strike Hazard In The Uk, J. C. Bell

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Changes in bird populations have been recognised as affecting the risk to aircraft of a bird strike. However, in terms of bird strike prevention, changes are generally only considered at the local level i.e. reducing the number of birds on the airfield. At a national level, concern has been expressed about recent increases in waterfowl, particularly geese, and the implications that this may have for flight safety, and management of the risk. However, although work is currently being undertaken to investigate if higher numbers of large waterfowl are causing an increased risk to safety (Allan, Bell & Jackson in press), …

Private Industry Initiative At Bird Control: A Success Story, Nick Barnes, Rhian Christie, Stan Kruse

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

An increase in land development pressures and land use conflicts in urban centres with airports requires that a greater priority be placed on bird control and wildlife management. This is a particularly high concern for the siting and operation of landfills. Minimizing the potential for bird/wildlife interactions with aircraft is critical to maintaining air traffic safety. Browning-Ferris Industries (BFI) has demonstrated a corporate sensitivity to the bird management issue. A corporate commitment has been made to address the issue of bird management at waste management facilities in the vicinity of airports. This paper provides an overview of two case studies …

The Use Of Night Landfilling To Reduce Bird Hazards To Aircraft Safety, Rolph A. Davis, Joseph Mangino

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

The Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA) operates a ‘bulky waste’ (non-putrescible waste) landfill at a site that is 10,300 ft from the end of the main runway at the Atlantic City (NJ) International Airport (ACY). The airport supports the Federal Aviation Administration’s Technical Center. The ACUA also operates a transfer station at its site. Municipal solid waste (msw = putrescible) is delivered to the transfer station during the day. Previously, the msw was loaded onto transfer trucks and shipped to an out-of-state landfill. In October 1997, the ACUA received a permit to conduct a 2-year experiment to dispose of the …

A Model To Determine The Severity Of A Birdstrike With Flocks Of Canada Geese, Richard Budgey, J. R. Allan

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

The number of birds of a flocking species likely to be ingested into an aircraft engine in a multiple birdstrike is of profound interest to engineers when they consider birdstrike tolerance in engine design. Of even more importance than the number of birds which may enter a single engine, when power can still be supplied by the remaining engines, is the probability of more than one engine suffering an ingestion. The historical birdstrike record can provide such information but is sometimes unreliable as it may be, of necessity, based upon unreliable data; the species of the birds involved may not …

Monitoring The Distribution, Abundance, And Movements Of Birds Near Vancouver International Airport, M. W. Demarchi, G. F. Searing, M. K. Mcnicholl, T. Mochizuki

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

The Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is Canada’s second-busiest civil airport and is located on the Fraser River delta—the staging and wintering ground for millions of birds representing many taxonomic groups. Consequently, YVR experiences one of the highest bird-strike rates of any airport in Canada. Since 1994, LGL Limited has investigated and monitored avian ecology as it relates to existing and potential hazards to air-traffic safety at YVR. A formalized monitoring program is on-going. The distribution, abundance, and flight patterns of birds are recorded and summarized by individual species or by taxonomic group. Monthly and semiannual reports present information that depict …

A Fixed Netting System As A Means Of Excluding Birds From A Domestic Waste Landfill, Vicky S. Jackson, J. Brown, J. R. Allan

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Many bird species are attracted to landfills which take domestic or putrescible waste. These sites provide a reliable, rich source of food which can attract large concentrations of birds. The birds may cause conflicts with human interest with respect to noise, birds carrying litter off site, possible transmission of pathogens in bird droppings and the potential for birdstrikes. In the UK there is an 8 mile safeguarding radius around an airfield, within which any planning applications must pass scrutiny from regulatory bodies to show they will not attract birds into the area and increase the birdstrike risk. Peckfield Landfill site …

The Avian Hazard Advisory System, T. Adam Kelly, Ronald Merritt, Thomas J. Donalds Maj., Ronald L. White

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

The Air Combat Command (ACC) Bird Hazard Working Group (BHWG), in conjunction with Geo-Marine Inc., has developed a system to use NEXRAD weather radar data, weather forecasts, and known bird distributions, to identify bird hazards to military aircraft conducting low altitude, high speed training, and provide aircrews with hazard advisories. The paper presented here describes Phase I of AHAS implementation, the demonstration and validation phase, conducted during the fall 1998 migratory season in the Northeast U.S. Forecasts of bird activity for the next 24 hours, observations of current migratory conditions and historic data from the US Bird Avoidance Model (BAM) …

Thermal Imagery Applied To Reducing Bird Hazards To Aircraft At Airports, James R. Ivey Cpt.

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Airports worldwide are at a disadvantage when it comes to being able to spot birds and warn aircrews about the location of flocks either on the ground or close to the airfield. Birds simply cannot be easily seen during the day and are nearly invisible targets for planes at night or during low visibility. Thermal imaging (infrared) devices can be used to allow ground and tower personnel to pinpoint bird locations day or night, thus giving the airport operators the ability to launch countermeasures or simply warn the aircrews. This technology is available now, though it has been predominately isolated …

The Benefits And Costs Of Performing An Ecological Study At The Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport: A Journey Of Enlightenment, John Ostrom

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

MSP Ecological Study--Objectives 1. To identify any and all species of wildlife present at MSP that may pose a threat to aviation safety and to document their numbers, seasonal distribution, behavior and natural or man-made features that are attractive to wildlife on or near the airport.
2. To make recommendations for mitigation of identified wildlife attractants and management of wildlife species that may pose a threat to aviation safety.

Temporal And Spatial Patterns Of Avifauna On Wetlands In The Vicinity Of Bush Field Airport, Augusta, Georgia, Usa, Robert A. Kennamer, L. Brisbin Jr., K. F. Gaines, W. L. Stephens Jr.

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Responding to a U.S. Federal court order to improve discharged wastewater quality, Augusta, Georgia initiated development of artificial wetlands in 1997 to treat effluents. Because of the proximity to Augusta Regional Airport at Bush Field, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration expressed concern for potential increased hazard to aircraft posed by birds attracted to these wetlands. We commenced weekly low-level aerial surveys of habitats in the area beginning January, 1998. Over a one-year period, 49 surveys identified approximately 42,000 birds representing 52 species, including protected Wood Storks and Bald Eagles, using wetlands within 8 km of the airport. More birds were …

The German Military Geophysical Service. Bird Migration Observation, Warning And Forecasting System: New Developments Towards An Automated Bird Migration Information System, Wilhelm Ruhe

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

The German Military Geophysical Office (GMGO) has a more than 30-years experience in all fields of bird strike prevention. Military training and flight operations usually take place in low altitudes, where also a lot of birds are present, especially near coasts and during migration periods. About one third of all the GAF bird strikes occurs during low level flight operations. The most effective tool for bird strike prevention in military low level flying is the well proved system of
· continuous actual bird migration observation (visual and by radar),
· immediate reporting,
· centralised risk evaluation,
· online warning (BIRDTAM), …

Coping Strategies For The Aircraft Birdstrike Problem: Resisting Impacts, Avoiding Collisions, And …, R. J. Speelman Iii, M. E. Kelley, R. E. Mccarty, J. J. Short

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

When birds and aircraft occupy the same airspace at the same time, bad things happen. Annual DoD costs probably exceed $200 Million per year, and dollar losses to world-wide aviation have been estimated at $3 Billion to $4 Billion per year (in US dollars). Much has been done in the past to improve the bird impact resistance of aircraft, and some further improvements would be cost effective on some aircraft. A new manufacturing technology for aircraft transparencies that can increase strength while slashing costs by 80% is one promising approach. However, the “law of diminishing returns” comes into play, and …

Raising Public Awareness Of Bird Strike Risk Issues With An Enhanced Bird Strike Committee Usa Web Site, Todd Curtis

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Since 1997, a World Wide Web site managed by a member of Bird Strike Committee USA and a site managed by the Committee leadership were instrumental in supporting Committee efforts to reduce these hazards. Based on insights gained from these two Web sites, a new site was created that contained the most effective elements of the earlier sites and new elements designed to enhance the ability of the Committee to accomplish its mission. The new elements included the acquisition and use of the domain name birdstrike.org, the ability to electronically submit bird and other wildlife strike reports directly into the …

Integrated Management Systems For Australian White Ibis (Threskiornis Molucca) On The Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, Phillip P. Shaw

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

Fueled by a large supplemental food supply at landfills in South-east Queensland, Australian White Ibis (Threskiornis molucca) populations grew from an estimated 5000 to 10000 between 1995 and 1998. Ibis counted at Coolangatta Airport reflected this growth with a 556% increase between 1989 and 1995. The multimillion-dollar loss of a Qantas airbus engine from ingestion of an Ibis, resulted in the establishment of the Ibis Management Coordination Group (IMCG). This group, comprising government, industry and community representatives, instigated an integrated program of food reduction, restriction of breeding success and public education. The program has become an example for management programs …

Pbi/Gordon’S Stronghold™ Plus Bk 800 Broadleaf Weed Control Reduces Mowing, And Eliminates Grass And Weed Seedheads, Earl Tracy

1999 Bird Strike Committee-USA/Canada, First Joint Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC

We entered the birdstrike arena last year at the Burke Lakefront Airport just prior to the 1998 Bird Strike Committee meeting. Stronghold was applied tank-mixed with Flight Control™ Bird Repellent from Environmental Biocontrol, International ,Wilmington, Delaware. The initial test on the airport was not conclusive, but the idea of the combination appealed to Dr. Richard Dolbeer, Project Leader, USDA , National Wildlife Research Center, Sandusky, Ohio. A second trial plot was established on government property at Sandusky, Ohio. The objective being to quantify the value of Stronghold to the bird repellent activity of Flight Control. The results are to be …