1. How common are aborted landings before T/O and how common are birdstrikes?
Answer: Rejected takeoffs occur much less frequently than go-arounds, but they are not unusual. Birdstrikes are fairly common and there are many measures in place to reduce their frequency. The main problem is that airfields are fairly attractive places for birds.
2. How late can the pilot call off the take off? RAK seemed to have a very long runway, I checked and is over 10,000 ft.
Answer: The calculated V1 speed for the conditions, this takes into account, Aircraft Weight, Wind Direction & Strength, Temperature, Barometric Pressure, Runway Length, Terrain & Obstacles in the immediate climb out area. The list is not exhaustive but is intended to give an indication of the factors involved. Up to V1 the aircraft can be brought to a stop in the runway remaining, above V1 the takeoff can be safely continued following the loss of an engine. Again a slightly simplified explanation.
3. How much damage can a bird do to an engine?
Answer: Varies from none to very serious. One small bird might leave a smear of blood on a couple of blades, half a dozen large gulls at high speed would probably mean an engine change. A bird ingestion can induce a surge because the airflow into the engine is disrupted. This manifests itself in the form of flame from the exhaust, noise and various other indications in the engine instruments. Although quite alarming in appearance, surges are transitory and in many cases do not result in damage.
4. Would this incident have to be reported in some way, other than the flight log?
Answer: In addition to an entry in the Technical Log describing the fault that caused the take off to be abandoned the crew would usually be expected to file an Air Safety Report (ASR). The ASR would decribe the circumstances under which the take off was rejected and would cross refer to the entry in the technical log. Subsequently, the company safety department would be able to bring together all the reports relating to the event and evaluate the incident before deciding on any further action.
5. How serious is an incident like this?
Answer: From your description the circumstances, I would describe it as significant but not serious. They stopped the aircraft and returned to have it inspected. After ascertaining that there was no damage (I assume) they continued safely on their way. At "low" speed; typically below 90kts; the take off might be abandoned for many reasons, but rejecting the take off at a late stage would only be due to a serious condition such as an engine failure. Really all I can say is that the crew would take what they deemed to be the safest course of action in the light of the information available to them. But, I would stress that in some circumstances this might involve continuing the take off after a quite serious failure. It could be preferable to get airborne, deal with the problem and then return to land once everything had been secured. There are many variables in these situations.
If it helps put your mind at rest, I had one full blooded high speed rejected take off (RTO) in 42 years.
exmpa