Share your bird strike stories

SixPapaCharlie

SixPapaCharlie

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I've not hit a bird in a plane. Though some of them on the runway really wait until the last minute to get out of the way.

It is that time of year in TX where the big ones hover around the runways. I think they are called turkey vultures.

I have come really close twice and both times realized due to their size and dark coloring, how quickly they appear and how little reaction time you have.

I notice they tuck their wings and dive if you get too close.

I am aware of a story where a CFI and Student died after they hit a bird.

Have you had a bird strike?
Wing? Windshield?
Size and type of bird?
What sort of damage did it do?

Just curious as this is one of those things in flying where you don't have a ton of control of the full equation.
 
Yeah, its these guys. They are all over the place out here.

turkeyVulture.jpg



http://www.int-birdstrike.org/Athens_Papers/IBSC27 WPII-3.pdf

It is now believed that the number of fatal bird strike accidents has risen to 47 killing 242 people. In addition the total of aircraft destroyed is now 90.
These additional accidents are briefly detailed in the Paper so that the totals are now:
•Airliners and Executive Jets – 12 fatal
accidents killing 174 and destroying 37 aircraft.

•Aeroplanes 5,700 kg and below – 29 fatal
accidents killing 58 and destroying 45 aircraft.

•Helicopters – 6 fatal accidents killing 10 people and destroying 8 helicopters.



 
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SixPapaCharlie said:
Have you had a bird strike?

Yes.

Wing? Windshield?

Just above the windshield, and the vertical stab.

Size and type of bird?

:dunno: All that was left of it was blood and traces of bone and feathers.

What sort of damage did it do?

Zilch. (Okay, it scratched the paint.)
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Hit in cruise at 3500 feet, nowhere near water, never saw it coming. Happened in March I believe.
 
October 2011 - returning to KILG Wilmington, DE from the Lima bean festival in Cape May NJ KWWD.

I had pulled the power for slow flight down the runway, approved to land long. As I sat 08Romeo down on the mains a huge flock of purple martins took flight, left to right and head on, honestly they were everywhere. Two bounced of the windshield and one hit the side of the plane. I reported to the tower that there will be few dead birds on the runway just past our touchdown. The tower asked me to call and advise of any damage. We taxied in and shut down giving 08Romeo the once over. Leading edges looked fine and the only residue left was some dusty dander patches on the windshield. I called to let the tower know there was no damage. Operations came by to confirm no damage and advise that I had indeed reduced the feathered population by three.


purple_martin_cameronrognan.jpg

 
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What really happened to US Airways Flight 1549...

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Have you had a bird strike?
a few

Wing? Windshield?
rotor blade

Size and type of bird?
seagull

What sort of damage did it do?
took the paint off the rotor blade and made a heck of a mess, see picture
 

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A good friend's father was one of the pilots on this flight. Bird control around Alaska airports got much more serious after this. It was attributed to geese in the engines.

http://www.cnn.com/US/9509/alaska_crash/09-23/index.html

I hit some swallows once. No damage, just noise. I had a really close call with an adult Bald Eagle. I still don't know how we missed each other.
 
First night flight while in training. On downwind to land and loud 'thump' on windshield. Thought it was a LARGE bug. Took inventory, everything was working. Finished the lesson and while inspecting the windshield found blood and small feathers. Couldn't have been a big bird, but bird it was.

There was always one Turkey Vulture at the end of 36 at TKI that I'm pretty sure was trying to kill me. I recognized him by the scar on his head. Always RIGHT there when I was on final. I hated that bird.
 
Years ago I was once coming in to land and there was a small bird (pigeon sized) on the runway. I thought it would fly away. It didn't. It was just sitting. I was going to touch down just beyond it. Just as I was about to pass over it and touch down, it suddenly flew up and I heard a small bang as it impacted on the belly :lol: There was no damage.
 
Not in my plane but had one in my truck. Hit the top of my windshield at freeway speed and the thing EXPLODED like a feather pillow busting open.

I had to laugh cuz I thought that only happened in cartoons!
 
Shawn said:
Not in my plane but had one in my truck. Hit the top of my windshield at freeway speed and the thing EXPLODED like a feather pillow busting open.

I had to laugh cuz I thought that only happened in cartoons!
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I've come VERY close to having a bird strike while driving, but they always seem to manage to avoid me at the last split second. I guess their dinosaur brains just can't deal with beasts on THEIR turf that are so much faster.
 
100' in a Aerostar 90,000cu ft Hot Air Balloon 5 small birds came into the basket chased by a hawk that was circleing the balloon looking for lunch. One bird flew up into the balloon un noticed till we hit the burner not good.
 
I hit a couple doves on the runway in Destin in my Citation, one hit the wing the other nailed the upper spoiler, it wasn't pretty but no harm to anything except the doves. ;)
The other time I was at 5000 feet over Atlanta heading to Athens in my 421B, Charlene. :D My son was in the right seat with my wife, daughter and golden retriever in the back. Thomas was operating the radios and ATL approach called traffic at 1 O'clock, it was 172 maneuvering at 4500, we spotted it and continued eastbound. About 15 seconds later we heard a BANG and a shudder from the nose of the airplane, I immediately thought we had hit the 172!:yikes::yikes::yikes:
What we had actually hit was a buzzard of some type, we had blood and feathers on the windshield, so I was sort of relieved! :yes: We diverted to Canton, my maintenance shop to inspect the damage, I asked Thomas if he wanted to call Atlanta approach and tell them what happened, he passed on that one! :D


 
I hit one in a Cub taking off from 11N years ago. Or maybe it was N69. I forget. Don't know the specie. It had been pretty much macerated by the prop.

There was no damage to the airplane other than cleaning off the blood and guts. The bird didn't fare as well.

Rich
 
Shawn said:
Not in my plane but had one in my truck. Hit the top of my windshield at freeway speed and the thing EXPLODED like a feather pillow busting open.

I had to laugh cuz I thought that only happened in cartoons!
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Turkey vs. VW Golf at 65 MPH.
http://www.pilotsofamerica.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1583292&postcount=7
I see the humor in it now but it wasn't particularly funny at the time. :eek:

edit: I see we shared the same exchange last time :D

Nauga,
who knows what went through the turkey's mind...:eek:
 
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Hit a small starling type bird,on approach to landing,in my beech Travelair. No damage to the plane,some remnants of the bird on the nose cone. Glad he was a small one.
 
frfly172 said:
Hit a small starling type bird,on approach to landing,in my beech Travelair. No damage to the plane,some remnants of the bird on the nose cone. Glad he was a small one.
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I nailed a hawk with the main rotor blade in a right turn to final. The hawk never filed a report with the ntsb so I don't think he survived. The main rotor blades needed replacing. Downed the helo for nearly 8 weeks.
 
Never hit one in a plane. Hit several in helos though.

Took one to the windscreen once and cracked the glass. Took one to the pitot tube and it stuck to it. Took one to the mast and the guts hit the ALQ-144 "disco ball" and failed it. Had chalk 2 take one through the chin bubble at 140 kts and the pilot was covered in guts. Can't recall how many hit with the blades. Loud pop and feathers and guts. Last year took this one to the windscreen flying back to base.
 

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Birds love helicopters.
 

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Two, both at the same airport, small bird both times, somewhere between a finch and a dove in size.

First time the bugger hit the strut of a 208B on landing, didn't even scratch the paint, but there was blood and feathers all over the bottom of the wing.

Second time, just touched the mains down on the same plane and one of these birds decides to play chicken, he hit the very edge of the prop, split the birds gut, zero damage, very little blood, bird was even intact on the runway.
 
Never hit one, but I have seen those vultures in Shawnee before. Must have been 20-30 of them circling over the runway this time last year. I grabbed the noise pistol and shot at them - it took two pops to get them to move, but then they slowly circled into and through the downwind-to-base area for 17, out of gun range :mad2:

Too bad I didn't have any missiles...
 
Two aircraft related strikes:

Glider off-field landing on a corporate park lawn. Flock of Canadian Geese took off as I turned short final. They rose as I descended. Intersected at 50' feet or so where one impacted wing. On my way to inspect lifeless carcass a driver had stopped his car and was walking to the carcass as well. He warned me that I was 'in trouble', proceeded to pick up the bird, return to his car, put it in back and drove off. It was in New jersey. Wing took $500 of damage.

While towing a glider trailer along I-80 in NJ, an entire family of geese was trying to cross the busy highway. Thirty five foot trailer prevented any meaningful evasive action. I'll never forget the sound of a half dozen geese bouncing underneath my vehicle. Sounded like someone beating a drum. All I saw was feathers in the rear view..... ugh
 
Only one. The day I soloed. We were up dual before and one of the swallows (I think) that hung around the airport zigged when he should have zagged. Got him with the prop. No damage to the plane, but it ruined the bird's day. Landed, checked for damage, called the tower to let them know where the bird was and then got signed off to solo. Haven't hit one since.
 
Helicopters are bird magnets...flushed a large covey of quail through the rotor of an AH-1...very messy...my stick buddy in flight school had a incident with a turkey vulture and a TH-55 with the doors off...ended up in the cockpit with him pecking the crap out of him and defecating all over him and the cockpit...we would not have believed him except for the wounds, bird crap and feathers witnessed after the PL.
 
Many years ago I was on short finals in a Tiger Moth biplane, and near touchdown a flock of swifts were startled and flew past me, so I thought. After I had parked the airplane one of the ground crew came up and pulled a bird;s wing from the bracing wire, cut it right off. Make me feel bad for days to think of that poor bird!
 
Dusk takeoff from KEDC (Austin Executive); about to rotate when I saw something in the corner of my eye, a blur, then a solid THUD! I aborted, taxied back and found feathers and blood all over the front of cowling, and some on the prop.

Line guys went out, easily found that I had chopped an owl clean in two, told me that it is not so uncommon, and that the birds were drawn to the landing light.

I felt awful, owls being nothing but good birds, but the plane was uninjured.
 
1st birdstrike i was instructing in the back on an Aeronca Champ and were landing as we rounded out a red tail hawk came along side on the right and flew in formation with us about 10 feet in front of the wing. Just as we were flaring, couldn't have been going any slower, he pulled up like he was going to fly over the top of the wing and flew right into the leading edge of the wing. Killed the Hawk but didn't hurt the plane.

Brian
 
Haven't had a bird strike yet, but came close once:

I was mucking my way through a discovery flight a few years ago; I glanced to the left and found a seagull practicing formation flight with me at 9 o'clock low; distance of about 20 feet out and about five feet lower than my sightline. We shared the same ground track for about five seconds before the seagull broke left and low.

I looked surprised. The seagull looked bored.
 
On my check ride on very short final for a grass strip landing hit a bird with the wing.
Doe got out to check the plane and off we went. No damage.
 
Ran over a guineafowl in South Africa with a bush tire on a 172. They aren't so bright.
 
We vaporized a couple of small birds in the Pilatus's prop this morning on the roll.

Skipped a few off the windshield, too.

Lol
 
I hit a turkey buzzard in a 172. Drove the leading edge between two of the (false) ribs back to the spar.
 
ACME PT Cruiser?

BeepBeep!!


BEEP.jpg
 
There I was over Macho Grande at twelve-five in my trusty 152. I heard a thump and the aircraft yawed left. Right rudder corrected the yaw. I couldn't see the damage but knew I'd been hit and I finished the mission. Landed, got out for the post mission walk-around...sure enough, there it was, a turkey buzzard impaled on the trailing edge of the wing.



:D
 
My closest call was flying into KFFA. On final, birds were flying around me in all directions. No clue what that was all about but it scared the hell out of me to see that many birds go whooshing by.

On the way to the airport for my first ever night flight as a student, I hit a flock of birds with my truck. That was nasty and all I could say was "well, I got my bird strike outta the way. Should be a smooth flight now!"
 
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