Sustainable airport safety measures: putting birds on bird-watch patrol

Most birds can fly – some even get to take to the air without having to lift a wing, as was the case recently, when Skyport transported 30 falcons from the Czech Republic to Kuwait. Those birds were on a special mission: to start their careers as full-time members of the Wildlife Hazard Management teams at Kuwaiti airports.

Here are a few facts when it comes to civil aviation and wildlife hazards: Bird strikes account for 97% of all animal-aircraft collisions, and cause millions of dollars’ worth of damage; the FAA estimates that economic “losses could be as high as $500 million per year.” Most bird strikes take place during the day, usually at heights of below 1000 m, with almost two-thirds happening during descent, approach, and landing roll, just over one-third during take-off and climb, while a tiny remaining percentage (3%) occurs en-route. Over a quarter of all bird strikes lead to damaged engines. Needless to say, they pose a serious risk to aviation. The pandemic aside, with the huge increase of aircraft in the skies over the past few decades, flying faster and quieter than before, as well as wildlife populations expanding, the risk of bird strikes has also risen.

Make the airport an unwelcoming place for wildlife
“Wildlife Hazard Management” measures to prevent the risk of bird strikes at airports include a number of different tactics to keep birds away. Since they are attracted by food, water and shelter sources, grass verges should be kept at a length that is unattractive to them, using land in the airport vicinity for agricultural purposes should be discouraged, any water sources in the area should be covered with netting, and airports should be designed in such a way as to avoid birds taking shelter. Some airports apply audio repellents (such as distress call recordings, pyrotechnics, or ultrasonic devices) or visual repellents (scarecrows, dead birds in “death pose”, or red lasers, for example). There are no 100% failsafe solutions, but what works well and is a more sustainable, natural method, is the deployment of an innately feared enemy: a bird of prey.

Not cheap, but effective
The first recorded use of trained falcons in preventing bird strikes, was on a Scottish airbase in the 1940s, with various studies taking place over the subsequent decades at various European and North American airports. Birds will avoid areas where they are exposed to a natural predator. Falconry programs, however, are expensive to run, as a trained and dedicated crew of staff and birds need to carry out daily rounds for the method to be effective. At least two full-time, skilled staff are required to care for and work with the falcons, and a whole team of falcons needs to be kept on site, to ensure that at least one bird is always ready to fly. Like horses, falcons have individual personalities, and thus are not always prepared to go and hunt when required. Plus, the weather has to be right – not wet, rainy, or windy.