by Wayne Switzer
Comedian Bill Engvall tells one particular story at some of his shows that many people find improbable, when the airplane in which he was a passenger struck a deer. However, airport employees around the world know that hitting a deer with an airplane happens more often than many think. Not to mention, the hazards of geese, other birds, fox, coyote and so on.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) uses the innocent sounding name “wildlife strikes” for these encounters. It doesn’t really convey the threat to life and limb of the flying public. The fact that, in 2009, a wildlife strike that caused total engine loss for U.S. Airways Flight 1549 (i.e. “Miracle on the Hudson) right after takeoff in New York City, paints a better picture.
Fortunately for the 155 souls on board this aircraft, their pilot was Captain Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger – a former fighter pilot with 19,663 flight hours, who made the “most successful ditching in aviation history,” according to National Transportation Safety Board member Kitty Higgins. But we are not always so fortunate. From 1990 to 2013, there were 142,000 wildlife strikes reported in the United States. Ninety-seven (97) percent of those were bird strikes, with a reported cost of $639 million (FAA data).
But the real cost, as we know in the aviation world, is the risk to those in the air. Well-managed airports strive to provide the safest environment possible, and the best practice tool for strikes is having and using a good “wildlife management plan.”
In their most complex form, these plans involve a yearlong wildlife study, followed by creation of the plan with recommendations specific to the airfield involved. Sound expensive? Maybe, but wildlife management plans can also be scaled down for General Aviation airports.
Take a look at what’s already out there. If your airport has done an environmental assessment in recent years, you may already have enough information.
There is also an inexpensive option available – approach your local agencies for help.
FAA Airport District Offices, or the local office of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Fish and Wildlife Service, can offer a lot of experience and assistance before you start spending hard-to-come-by aviation improvement dollars.
Planning For Wildlife Management
An important step in managing wildlife strikes is appropriate planning of the airport area itself. By recognizing how the land on and around the airport is used, you can tell what types of wildlife might be attracted to the area. That way, the chances of wildlife strikes can be reduced.
According to FAA records, some of the most hazardous wildlife to airport operations are:
• Gulls
• Waterfowl
• Raptors (hawks, eagles, etc.)
• Deer
These species tend to be attracted by these types of land uses:
• Putrescible-waste disposal operations.
• Wastewater treatment facilities.
• Wetlands.
• Dredge spoil containment areas.
Recognizing existing wildlife attractants, as well as mitigating the creation of new wildlife attractants on or near the airport, will help to reduce the risk of wildlife strikes.
What Airport Managers Can Do
The FAA, working with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, has developed a manual for airport management to reduce the chances of wildlife strikes. One focus of the manual includes removing the reasons animals congregate near an airport, such as modifying the habitat of the airport and the surrounding area. Some of those measures include:
Vegetation Management
• AOA vegetation
• Drainage ditch vegetation
• Landscaping
• Agriculture
Water Management
• Permanent Water
• Wetlands
• Canals/ditches/streams
• Holding ponds
• Sewage (glycol) treatment ponds
• Other water/wet areas
• Runways, taxiways, aprons
Food/Prey Management
• Rodents
• Earthworms
• Insects
• Grain/Seeds
• Garbage—handling, storage
• Handouts (feeding wildlife)
Airport Buildings
• Airfield structures
• Abandoned structures
• Terminal
• Airport construction
Source: http://www.faa.gov/airports/airport_safety/wildlife/problem/media/2005_FAA_Manual_complete.pdf
Managing wildlife on and near airports is not a problem that is just solved and the airport gets to move on. Wildlife and the hazard they represent requires vigilance and a commitment to address the issues year-round.
Many airports choose a “safe shooting” program as a prime component of their plan. This involves use of short range guns such as shotguns or handguns that can be relied on to stay on airport property when they are aimed properly. The plans also include training and certification of a select corps of marksmen to carry it out, making certain the program stays safe and effective. Resources to help establish a personal management plan for your local airport are included at the end of this article.
The U.S. Department of Transportation has also done some excellent research on the topic, through the Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP). There is also a template available from the FAA for airports or consultants to customize solutions for their specific situation.
Sources
• ACRP Studies
• ACRP Report 32, “Guidebook for Addressing Aircraft/Wildlife Hazards at General Aviation Airports”
• Wildlife challenges confronting general aviation airports.
• Techniques and strategies for addressing wildlife challenges.
• Identifying and controlling wildlife species found at airports.
• Wildlife attractants and best management practices that can minimize wildlife activity at and around airports.
• Wildlife control strategies and techniques most appropriate at general aviation airports.
• Developing wildlife control programs.
• ACRP Synthesis 39, “Airport Wildlife Population Management.”
• ACRP Synthesis 23, “Bird Harassment, Repellent, and Deterrent Techniques for Use On and Near Airports.”
• Direct wildlife population control techniques for reducing wildlife collisions with aircraft.
• Ecological foundations of wildlife population control and management.
• FAA Resources
• Advisory Circular; AC 150/5200-33B, Hazardous Wildlife Attractants On or Near Airports.
• Wildlife Management Plan template; http://www.faa.gov/airports/northwest_mountain/airport_safety/media/acm_sample.doc
EDITOR’S NOTE: Wayne Switzer is a senior aviation engineer with Ulteig, and works out of the company’s Bismarck, North Dakota office (www.ulteig.com)
