While the exact cause of the tragic plane crash in South Korea that killed 179 people remains unclear, questions are being raised about whether a bird strike – an increasingly common occurrence on aircraft around the world – could be responsible are.
South Korean officials said the control tower at Muan International Airport issued a bird warning to the plane shortly before its scheduled landing on Sunday. Investigators are actively investigating the crash and its possible causes.
Thanks to rigorous testing that aircraft undergo during construction, they are often resistant to bird strikes. But these events cost airlines millions of dollars in damages every year, and while they are rare, they can also lead to injuries and fatalities.
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Mourners view the scene of a plane fire from outside Muan International Airport in Muan, South Korea. The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
Don’t be afraid, bird strikes are remarkably common
Essentially, pilots in the United States see bird strikes every day, which occur when a bird collides with the engine, cockpit window or nose of an aircraft, says Shawn Pruchnicki, a professor at the Center for Aviation Studies and Integrated Systems Engineering at the Ohio. State University. “When I was a pilot, we hit birds all the time,” especially the small ones like cardinals, robins and sparrows.
Despite their frequency, aircraft collisions with birds and other wildlife are becoming an increasing concern for aviation safety, according to a report published this year by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services. The report examined a 34-year period of attacks by birds and other wildlife on aircraft from 1990 to 2023.
Researchers like Pruchnicki are trying to better understand this phenomenon and its risks to aviation safety.
Here are some statistics that shed light on the prevalence of bird and wildlife collisions:
- FAA Wildlife Strike Database indicates there were approximately 19,400 strikes at 713 U.S. airports in 2023. According to FAA data, approximately 236 strikes occurred at 92 airports in 55 countries in 2023.
- Globally, wildlife attacks (including birds, deer and other animals) involving civilian and military aircraft have killed more than 491 people and destroyed more than 350 aircraft between 1988 and 2023.
- In the US alone, wildlife attacks killed 76 people and destroyed 126 aircraft during the same period.
- That’s what the FAA says approximately 61% of bird strikes with civil aircraft occur during landing phases; 36% occurs during takeoff and climb; and the remaining (3%) occur during flight.
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In this Jan. 15, 2009, file photo, passengers in an inflatable raft depart from US Airways Flight 1549 that crashed into New York’s Hudson River. The passenger plane survived a bird strike and an emergency landing.
Serious damage can cost millions
Commercial jet engines must be carefully designed and tested to continue operating even when birds are sucked into them, according to the FAA.
However, according to Pruchnicki, problems can arise when larger birds collide with an aircraft.
One notable incident involved Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenbergerwho had to land his US Airways plane in the Hudson River in 2009 after hitting a flock of geese, causing both engines to fail. Fortunately, everyone on board survived. This incident highlighted the serious nature of bird strikes among the general public, Pruchnicki said.
A large Canada goose can weigh up to 14 pounds. When such a bird hits an airplane at high speed – up to 560 kilometers per hour – the impact can be compared to a bowling ball hitting a window. And that kind of damage quickly becomes expensive, Pruchnicki said.
Damage from bird strikes in the US from 1990 to 2019 is estimated at around $500 million per year. according to the FAA.
Damage to the engine, wing, nose or windshield of an aircraft is usually not life-threatening. In most cases the plane can still land safely. But once landed, that plane could remain out of service for weeks while it undergoes expensive repairs, Pruchnicki said. For example, a cracked cockpit window can easily cost up to $90,000 to repair. A dented wing? Maybe half a million dollars, he said.
“An airplane that’s under maintenance doesn’t make any money, right? So it takes weeks to get it done, and millions of dollars to fix it. That’s a huge problem” for airlines, he said.
According to the report published in March 2023 by the Federal Aviation Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services, two turkey vultures collided with a B-737 Max 8 leaving Jose Marti International Airport from Cuba. The collision damaged the plane’s radome and forced one of its engines to shut down. The pilots made an emergency landing, passengers were evacuated and later rebooked and the aircraft was withdrawn from service. Total repair costs? Estimated $14.5 million.
Efforts are being made to understand and prevent bird strikes
Many airports are built near waterways and landfills, Pruchnicki notes, so this naturally leads to collisions between nature and aircraft.
“We’re kind of invading their space,” he said.
Since the ‘Miracle on the Hudson’ in 2009, the US government has done just that tens of millions of dollars spent to airports to invest in wildlife hazard programs and research into wildlife collision detection and monitoring systems.
Have airports tried all kinds of techniquessuch as lasers and cannons, to scare away birds and other game, with varying degrees of success.
For his part, Pruchnicki said he is currently conducting research for the FAA to analyze the effectiveness of bird radar in preventing bird strikes at airports. The use of this type of equipment, which detects and tracks birds near airports, is not currently mandated by the FAA.
Pruchnicki said, “The idea is to figure out: How can we coexist?”
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