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Why Do Birds Often Hit Aircraft?

Why do agile birds often collide with aircraft or trucks? Bird strikes, as they are known, not only result in the death of the hapless bird but can also injure pilots if the bird impacts the cockpit area.

Administrator

1 December, 2024

Why do agile birds often collide with planes or trucks?

According to American scientists, they have found the reason why many bird species often collide with or are hit by planes and trucks.

The main reason cited is because the birds do not take into account the speed of the obstacle to avoid it but only focus on the distance between them and the obstacle at a certain point in time.

This is also the reason why many birds are hit or collide with planes or trucks, as these vehicles often travel at high speeds, usually over 75 mph.

This situation has been causing the deaths of thousands of birds each year, along with potential aviation disasters.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), approximately 9,000 birds are hit by planes in the US each year, and this number is certainly not all, as there are many other unreported bird strikes.

These strikes not only kill the innocent birds but can also injure pilots if they hit the cockpit.

In addition, as mentioned, they also pose a serious threat to flight safety, as they can sometimes cause engine damage and lead to other serious incidents.

To investigate the cause of this phenomenon in birds, a team of scientists from the US Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Research Center in Ohio, in collaboration with Indiana University and Purdue University, used virtual reality technology to study this phenomenon in more detail.

The researchers found that the birds they studied were unable to avoid vehicles traveling at speeds faster than 75 mph. Essentially, they could still avoid this unfortunate fate by choosing the right time to be warned and change flight paths as calculated by the scientists in the diagram below.

In a deeper experiment, the researchers tested a chickadee in a dark room. Using virtual reality technology, they simulated truck collisions with the bird multiple times at speeds ranging from 37 mph to 225 mph (typical speeds of small planes and take-off speeds of some commercial planes).

When measuring the bird’s reaction, the scientists found that it seemed to react based on the distance it perceived to the truck and, instead, ignored the “terrifying” speed at which the truck was approaching.

The studies also found that birds tend to start flying when the object is about 100 feet away. At the same time, because the distance at which birds start to take off and become alert is similar to the speed of the vehicles, they are often in danger when the vehicle’s speed is higher.

While most birds can easily handle situations with slow-moving objects, they seem to have difficulty finding a way to escape objects traveling at speeds of 75 mph or higher, similar to trucks and planes.