Hi Guys, thanks all for your opinions but I am not discussing if a PWS works with radar off or the use of the radar for meteo purposes (this is the reason it is there and I am sure all of you know how to use it!). Thanks for the opinions any way!
My post put in discussion whether or not a bird strike could be avoided using your airborne radar !
I think that the big majority of us agree that it is a myth. I could not find any reference about this statement, in a scientific way or a study about this, in spite that few airports briefing charts recommends the use of your radar due to bird concentration.
Thinking a little bit more, if you consider that the radar sweep is like a "knife" (normaly with a gap of 3º ) and very directional transmission (not omnidirectional), the bird should be in your radar beam to be scared off otherwise they would not "feel" or "see" your radar transmission because it does not exist out off the beam.
Getting out of airplanes, I have a small sailboat docked in a fishing port. I was talking to a few fishermen about this and they asked me if it is a joke ! When the fishing net is closed with lots of fish the seagulls are a problem for them and it does not matter if the onboard radar is on or off. (and lets consider their radar is an object sensitive one, much more powerfull than ours, 360º sweep with a large beam with a sweep rate between 1 to 2 revolutions per second (60 to 120 rpm).
Just another point to think about !
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The discussion is open and I would appreciate any reference to a scientific study about it (if there is one!)