Birdstrikes - How Often? How Likely?

[Flying Wild]

How often, or how likely is it for a light aircraft (such as a piper warrior) to experience a birdstrike, and how bad would the resulting mess likely be?
Would you be going OTT if you wore impact resistant sunglasses (like the Mil spec Oakleys) whilst flying?

[dublinpilot]

Bird strikes happen, they aren't uncommon, but they are not a regular occurance for any given pilot.

I've a little over 250 hours at this stage, and haven't had a bird strike. A friend that I fly a lot with has 400 hours, and no bird strikes. So that helps to put it into perspective.

Would you be going OTT if you wore impact resistant sunglasses (like the Mil spec Oakleys) whilst flying?

The chances of having a bird strick, where the bird strike was on the windscreen, and was with sufficient severity to penetrate the windscreen, and in such a location to then hit the pilot in the face, is so unlikely that I have never heard of such an incident. I'm not saying it's never happened, but it's extremely rare.

If it did happen, I can't imagine the brand of sunglasses making the slightest bit of difference. It's a bit like saying if you were punched in the face at full force, would you be better off wearing Oakleys........:rolleyes:

dp

[christimson]

Probably more chance of winning the lottery than having a bird go through the windscreen.

[Whirlygig]

I had a birdstrike on my second solo :eek: coming in on final (thankfully!). No damage to helicopter or me; Mr. Blackbird on the other hand :ouch: .

There's form-filling to be done if it happens!

Cheers

Whirls

[hobbit1983]

A mate of mine had a bird fly into his cowling on a check ride. He checked Ts & Ps....no problems. No other signs of trouble, indeed no sign of damage, therefore flew on!

[flybymike]

Coming in to land at Leeds Bradford several years ago in a C182 I was " cleared to land" on runway 27 ( now closed) At the commencement of the round out I saw a very large flock of lapwings perched contentedly fair and square on the threshold. These birds are a perennial problem at Leeds and fly in from the adjacent Tarn at yeadon. I briefly contemplated going around but instantly concluded that the increased noise and disturbance of overflying them at full power and low level would have resulted in them taking off directly in to the front of the aircraft, and that in the event of a subsequent forced landing I would not have had a clear cut landing area to aim for. I decided in a split second to proceed with the landing as the lesser of the two evils, knowing full well that they would be bound to leave the runway when I got closer to them. They all took off bang on cue right in front of me exactly as expected, and six of them hit the aircraft at various different points with no subsequent serious damage apart from one dent in a wing leading edge and a fair bit of blood and feathers here and there, at least one having gone throught the prop and another literally bouncing off the windscreen. Another hit the tailplane and I felt the impact through the stick. As has been mentioned there is some form filling to do for CAA analysis which comprised a report of aircraft damage, engine type, speed at time of impact( low in my case). The only inconvenience for the airport was the temporary closure of the runway while the bird debris was removed.:rolleyes:

[RatherBeFlying]

Had one at 3 in the morning. Most fortunately on the right corner of the windshield; so, neither came in, nor messed up my side of the windshield.

Landing light gave me enough warning to duck:eek:

Flying in a glider you see lots of birds. There's just as many out there flying behind an engine, but at the higher speed they're harder to see.

If you see one seagull, he's likely got mates nearby.

[Pilot DAR]

In 5000 hours I've had 4 bird strikes on different occasions, with no damage (other than bird bits to the plane). A number of evasive manuevers prevented more strikes.

Last year a local C172 hit a goose. It took out most of the windshield. The instructor landed safely, but he and the student were both in hospital for some time afterward. I saw the plane afterward, and in my opinion, it would have needed a complete new interior as well as a windshield.

Another friend hit a goose in a C150. It pushed the leading edge of the wing, outboard of the strut back so far that the spar was displaced. He said it would barely fly straight to land, but he got it down.

The little ones don't seem to do much harm, but goose sized birds are a problem...

[stiknruda]

1100 hours - two birdstrikes at 100 hours and 500.

Both on final to land

Citabria 1, guinea fowl 0
Pitts 1, partridge 1 - leading edge damage

[sternone]

Does anybody knows what is the height you are safe for birds ?

http://www.diamondair.com/images/safety/1.jpg

[Fuji Abound]

Is it true Penguins fall over backwards when keeping an eye on a plane?

PS In light aircraft you will always avoid strikes if you do the correct things .. .. ..

turn all your lights on so the birds can see you and

remember a bird will always dive away from you and away from the sun, so you should climb into the sun .. .. ..

works every time until you come across one that hasnt read the theory.

[LowNSlow]

I hit a blackbird on final for White Waltham (can't remember the runway)where these things seemed to flock at the threshold. There was a thump as one of them hit the port undercarriage leg. Pulled off the runway and checked, everything was OK so I reported it and carried on with my circuits.
I would imagine that something cruising at 120-130 knots taking a blackbird / seagull sized bird on the windscreen would result in the pilot eating an avian sandwich. Don't forget that the windscreens are ony 1/4" of perspex.

[the dean]

i recall hearing ( no confirmation ) of a pelican going through the windscreen of a 172 in florida...but in over 3000 hours i have had only one strike ( to the wing ) of a pa38 tomahawk with no damage resulting....

as christimson said you have probably a better chance of winning the lottery than having a serious birdstrike in you flying career ( if you are flying light aircraft )...but then the risks might be greater if for instance you fly in an area of intense bird activity...and depending on what part of the world you are flying in...many countries have large birds that fly at low altitudes and obviously the size of the bird ( not just the strike location ) is relevant..

i recall reading many years ago of an eagle ( i think ) that penetrated the cockpit of a 727...

like many things in life...its often a matter of fate and timing...

the dean.

[blue up]

I have a collection of birdstrike pics on my company laptop. The highest 'hit' I could find was just above FL310. One 767 out of CDG had multiple strike above 10,000 and one bird pierced the area below the windscreen, cut through the bulkhead, ripped the ASI out of the panel and smacked the skipper in the chest. 240 kts.
In 7000+ hrs of heavy jets I have had about 10 brdstrikes including a christmas day one at EMA (they told me it was a Turkey but I didn't believe them and settled for an 'unknown'). I've also had the same approx number of lightning strikes.

[sternone]

damned these pressurized birds, we should take their oxygen masks away and carry bullet proof vests!

[LowNSlow]

The highest reported bird strike occurred at 37,000 ft, with the highest reported sighting at 54,000 ft!


A common misconception is that only large birds cause significant damage to aircraft and that small birds are a mere nuisance. This may be true for slow moving aircraft like helicopters, but this is hardly true for fast-moving aircraft. If an 8-oz bird hits an aircraft traveling at 90 kts, the bird strikes the aircraft with a force of 2 tons. With the same 8-oz bird at double the speed (180 kts), the force of the impact is quadrupled to 8 tons of force!

Gratuitously lifted from http://www.propilotmag.com/March/avhazmar.html

[sternone]

54000 ft ?? oh my god!!! what kind of birds are that ?

[Fuji Abound]

54000 ft ?? oh my god!!! what kind of birds are that ?

Instrument rated of course, and I guess supplementary oxygen of some sort - either that or badly uncertain of its position.

[Wrong Stuff]

Instrument rated of course, and I guess supplementary oxygen of some sort - either that or badly uncertain of its position.

Can you see their squawk on TCAS?

[Footless Halls]

A couple of years ago I came across an Eagle over the ridge at Malvern. It was much bigger than a buzzard - I've seen plenty of those over the years - and until I got closer to it I thought it was another aircraft. 3,000'.

[gcolyer]

I nearly hit one as I rotated taking off from Kirkbride last year. It scared the crap out of me, I seriously thought I was going to hit it (or it was going to hit me). God knows what my PAX thought.
That was in an AA5-B

Here is another near miss with me landing the PA32 at Newtonards last year. Notice the raven near my tail.

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m243/gcolyer/Avfu5.jpg

[sternone]

I hope they have mode S transponders...

[ericferret]

Migrating ducks cross the Himalayas.

A 747 hit one at 30'000 plus which destroyed it's radome.

Penetrations of perspex screens are not uncommon. For some reason helicopters seem more vulnerable.
A jetranger pilot in the states was hit in the face by a duck which knocked him out. He was saved by the autopilot which remained engaged until he recovered. The duck was recovered from the rear parcel shelf.

If a large bird comes through the screen at 90 knots and hits you in the face a smart pair of shades will not be much use. They might save your eyes from flying perspex shards.

Just out of interest bird strikes on commercial airliners flying into and out of airfields in the UK are an almost daily occurence, particularly in coastal locations. The structure and engines on large aircraft will take the strain.

The slower the aircraft the more time the bird has to move out of the way.
It could be that single engined aircraft are protected by the prop to some extent.

[Sir George Cayley]

...there is no such bird as a seagul.

Black headed, common, lesser blackbacked, greater black-backed and herring gulls are wot they're called. Avoid mature herring and gb-b gulls - they hurt.

Blackbirds are not a threat - too small. The black birds seen around airfields are from the genus corvid i.e. Raven, Rook, Crow, Jackdoor or Magpie. In numbers they're probably Rooks. Canny birds corvids.

Geese - canada, Greylag or Brent plus Swans, Heron, Buzzard and Kite are big and can make control difficult after a strike on a light a/c

Plovers inc Lapwings (we used to call them peewits) being winter visitors are less of a risk now.

Flocks of starling seem to love turboprop engine intakes so a Bob Hoover style dead stick landing should always be performed if they are reported. Think how impressed the pax will be:D

Ducks and Racing pigeons - the Exocets of the bird world. Bang out if hit:cool:

But worry not. Chances are slim and of course all licensed aerodromes have an active bird scaring team don't they?

Sir George Cayley

[gcolyer]

I'll try to remember those names as I plough through a flock them:bored:

[gingernut]

Anyone looked at Tony's thread on JB? http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=271885

Guess the chances are pretty slim, but if it did happen you'd be in a bit of a mess.

I'm not sure of the result between toughned sunglasses vs human eye would be.

Any case studies?

[Cat.S]

House martin on the climb out from Shobdon in a PA 38, dived down to avoid the prop, hit a wheel and the prop wash blew it into an elevator, putting a fist-sized dent in it.

Another club member hit a crow on the climb out from Welshpool, which put a football sized dent in the leading edge of his PA 38.

[ChampChump]

A friend met a pheasant whilst landing a glider; it hit the airbrakes pretty hard.

I had a near miss when landing a 150 in Florida: all forty degrees hanging out, just over the hedge when the sand crane decided to take off. They're BIG. I was pretty much committed and (s)he manoeuvred as best (s)he could. Convinced I could read the expression, it's possibly the only time I could claim true empathy with a bird.

[nano404]

Can you see their squawk on TCAS?

Course not, you hear it.:)

[gcolyer]

House martin on the climb out from Shobdon in a PA 38, dived down to avoid the prop, hit a wheel and the prop wash blew it into an elevator, putting a fist-sized dent in it.

Another club member hit a crow on the climb out from Welshpool, which put a football sized dent in the leading edge of his PA 38.


That must have improved thethe flight characteristics of a Traumahawk. Fancy that traumatising two hawks at once.

Tin hat on, coat on, by.

[Chris Royle]

Not light a/c, but a few years ago now, 12 (not sure of exact number) aircrew lost their lives in a Nimrod shortly after take off from Kinloss (I think).
Encountered a flock of geese that were ingested into intakes.
Rest in Peace.

[blue up]

Gingernut.
An interesting 'aside'.
Contact lenses were developed through post WW2 studies into corneal damage from broken shards of windshield in aircrew. It was noticed that glass fragments caused damage and infection whilst perspex would rarely bring infection with it. Optician told me this a while back.:8

[IO540]

I've had 1 or 2 strikes in 700hrs, none through the prop yet.

I've seen vultures of some sort at about FL100 over Spain.

If there is any kind of prop damage then its an engine shock load inspection plus prop repair/replacement - very expensive.

[smith]

The Barrhead Goose is commonly found at altitudes of 30-50,000ft and have been responsible for a few strikes of airliners at high altitudes.

I have had one strike at Orkney with some kind of marine gull (to me it was a seagull but from a previous post I now realise that there is no such thing). Was in the take of roll and a flock of marine gulls flew in front of me, most of them scattered but one (maybe (s)he he didn't see the rotating prop) flew straight through the prop and glanced off the wind shield leaving a smear of blood on the perspex.

Stopped on runway and taxied back, the gull was perfectly sliced in two diagonally across its body, no blood, guts or feathers scattered about. His mates were circling above ready to take advantage of a free meal. I removed the parts from the runway so denying the circling masses of their dinner.

As previous a poster said and from my experience, think it would be difficult for a bird to go straight through the windshield in a SEP as the prop gives you protection and will scatter and disipate any energy between the bird and the windshield.

[High Wing Drifter]

with the highest reported sighting at 54,000 ft! Ah! The frozen chicken strike test isn't so stupid after all :\

[BroomstickPilot]

54000 ft ?? oh my god!!! what kind of birds are that ?

An ambitious one, of course. It was out to get Concorde.

Broomstick.

[Mungo Man]

I hit, or rather a Rook hit my windscreen just before Vr when I had 1100 hrs. We were doing about 130kts and it made one hell of a thump (loud enough for cabin crew to ask if everything was alright during initial climb) but fortunately no damage. We saw the bird lift off the runway and then it we knew it was inevitable but it was still a shock!Took this picture later on in the cruise. The flight was my final line check...:bored:

I really wouldn't like to meet a bird at higher airspeeds even thought the windscreen is certified...

http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p79/Skippymon/Birdstrike.jpg

[Ultralights]

messy! looks like it was cut in half by the temp probe or wipers?

the biggest scare i had was in an Archer at 8500 ft saw what i though was 2 planes in formation ahead of me, got closer to find they were Pelicans!
fortunately they saw me coming at them from behind, the one on the right dove away and below the wing , but the one on the left turned left then right then left again in rapid fashion (they do have a good roll rate those big pelicans!) it was about this time i though he is going to hit me when he dove quite quickly to the right and disappeared below the leading edge of the wing...

close enough to give me a good scare! and get a good dose of adrenalin in the system!

[smith]

http://www.rapp.org/wp-content/083105-eagle_strike1.jpg

http://www.rapp.org/wp-content/083105-eagle_strike3.jpg

http://www.rapp.org/wp-content/083105-eagle_strike2.jpg

go to google and type in C-130 bird strike and there are lots more

[DX Wombat]

Not a bird strike but an amusing incident landing back at EGBO earlier this year with a 152 which had flown from Blackpool and had followed me through Shawbury MATZ and who I hoped was listening but probably wasn't going to spoil the habit of the latter part of the trip, (if you are reading this I am STILL a HER!) :* and was asked to expedite a short backtrack as the 152 was on final. As I landed I saw one of the local buzzards sitting just inside the runway edge where I made a 180 deg turn. Buzzard looked at me for a second or two then hopped politely back over the white line at the edge.:) I let the tower know about its presence. A short time later my previous FI landed only to find it sitting in the middle of the runway from where it glared at him and refused to move :E - cue the birdscaring gear from the Fire Department which was eventually effective. :ok: It did this several times over the next few weeks and on the occasions when I was landing it always moved but still refused to do so for the FIs. I haven't seen it for a week or two :ok: but it is probably nesting at the moment.