U. S.

DEPARTMENT OF

TRANSPORTATION

FEDERAL

AVIATION

ADMINISTRATION

WILDLIFE STRIKES

TO CIVIL AIRCRAFT

IN THE

UNITED STATES

1990–2009

U.S.

Department of

Agriculture

Animal and

Plant Health

Inspection

Service

Wildlife

Services

FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION

NATIONAL WILDLIFE STRIKE DATABASE

SERIAL REPORT NUMBER 16

REPORT OF THE ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR FOR AIRPORTS

OFFICE OF AIRPORT SAFETY AND STANDARDS

AIRPORT SAFETY & CERTIFICATION

WASHINGTON, DC

MAY 2011
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

The U.S. Departments of Transportation and Agriculture prohibit discrimination in

all their programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin,

gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or marital or

family status (not all prohibited bases apply to all programs). Persons with

disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program

information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the appropriate

agency.

The Federal Aviation Administration produced this report in cooperation with the

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service,

Wildlife Services.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

i

AUTHORS

Richard A. Dolbeer, Science Advisor, Airport Wildlife Hazards Program, U.S. Department

of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services, 6100

Columbus Ave., Sandusky, OH 44870

Sandra E. Wright, Wildlife Strike Database Manager, Airport Wildlife Hazards Program,

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife

Services, 6100 Columbus Ave., Sandusky, OH 44870

John R. Weller, National Wildlife Biologist, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Federal

Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20591

Michael J. Begier, National Coordinator, Airports Wildlife Hazards Program, U.S.

Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services,

1400 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20250

COVER

The emergency forced landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River on 15

January 2009 after Canada geese were ingested in both engines on the Airbus 320

dramatically demonstrated to the public that bird strikes are a serious aviation safety issue.

AP Photo.

0

1

2

3

4

19701973197619791982198519881991199419972000200320062009

N

o. of g

e

e

s

e (x 1 millio

n)

Resident geese

Migrant geese

The Canada goose population in North America (migrant and resident birds) increased

from about 1.2 million in 1970 to 5.3 million in 2009 (Dolbeer and Seubert 2010).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

ii

Anyone with quality photographs of aircraft damage resulting from wildlife strikes or of wildlife at

airports is encouraged to submit them to one of the authors for consideration in future wildlife

strike publications.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES iv

LIST OF FIGURES v

LIST OF APPENDICES vi

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS vii

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ix

WILDLIFE STRIKES TO CIVIL AIRCRAFT IN THE UNITED STATES, 1990–2009 1

INTRODUCTION 1

RESULTS 4

CONCLUSIONS 11

FAA ACTIVITIES FOR MITIGATING WILDLIFE STRIKES 16

LITERATURE CITED 20

TABLES 26

FIGURES 62

APPENDIX A. SELECTED SIGNIFICANT WILDLIFE STRIKES TO U.S. CIVIL

AIRCRAFT, 2009

70
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

iv

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by wildlife

group, USA, 1990–2009 (see Figures 1 and 2).

26

Table 2. Number and rate of reported wildlife strikes and strikes with

damage for commercial air carrier aircraft, USA, 1990–2009 (see

Figure 3).

27

Table 3. Number and rate of reported wildlife strikes and strikes with

damage for general aviation aircraft, USA, 1990–2009 (see

Figure 3).

28

Table 4. Source of information for reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft,

USA, 1990–2009.

29

Table 5. Person filing report of wildlife strike to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–

2009.

30

Table 6. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by type of

operator, USA, 1990–2009.

30

Table 7. Number of reported bird, bat, terrestrial mammal, and reptile

strikes to civil aircraft by USA state, including the District of

Columbia (DC), Puerto Rico (PR), USA-possessed Pacific

Islands (PI), and the U.S. Virgin Islands (VI), 1990–2009.

31

Table 8. Reported time of occurrence of wildlife strikes with civil aircraft,

USA, 1990–2009.

32

Table 9. Reported phase of flight at time of occurrence of wildlife strikes

with civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

33

Table 10. Number of reported bird strikes to commercial aircraft by height

(feet) above ground level (AGL), USA, 1990–2009. See Figure

5 for graphic analysis of strike data from 500 to 18,500 feet AGL.

34

Table 11. Number of reported bird strikes to general aviation aircraft by

height (feet) above ground level (AGL), USA, 1990–2009. See

Figure 5 for graphic analysis of strike data from 500 to 18,500

feet AGL.

35

Table 12. Civil aircraft components reported as being struck and damaged

by wildlife, USA, 1990–2009.

36

Table 13. Number of civil aircraft with reported damage resulting from

wildlife strikes, USA, 1990–2009. See Tables 1, 2, and 3 and

Figure 5 for trends in damaging strikes from 1990–2009.

37
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

v

Table 14 Reported effect-on-flight (EOF) of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft,

USA, 1990–2009.

38

Table 15. Total reported strikes, strikes causing damage, strikes having a

negative effect-on-flight (EOF), strikes involving >1 animal,

aircraft downtime, and costs by identified wildlife species for civil

aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

39

Table 16. Number of reported strikes, strikes with damage, and strikes

involving multiple animals for the four most commonly struck bird

groups and three most commonly struck terrestrial mammal

groups, civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

56

Table 17. Bird and terrestrial mammal species with 25 or more reported

strikes with civil aircraft in USA, 1990–2009 (Table 15), ranked

by percent of strikes resulting in damage to aircraft.

57

Table 18. Number of civil aircraft lost (destroyed or damaged beyond

repair) after striking wildlife by wildlife species and aircraft mass

category, USA, 1990–2009.

60

Table 19. Number of reported wildlife strikes indicating damage or a

negative effect-on-flight (EOF) and reported losses in hours of

downtime and U.S. dollars for civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

61

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Number of reported bird (N = 96,626) and terrestrial mammal (N

= 2,307) strikes to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009. Additionally,

367 and 111 strikes involving bats and reptiles, respectively,

were reported for a total of 99,411 strikes by all species of

wildlife (see Table 1).

62

Figure 2. Number of reported bird (N = 10,185) and terrestrial mammal (N

= 917) strikes causing damage to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

Additionally, 7 and 1 damaging strikes involving bats and

reptiles, respectively, were reported for a total of 11,110

damaging strikes by all species of wildlife (see Table 1).

63

Figure 3. The strike rate (number of reported wildlife strikes per 100,000

aircraft movements, top graph) and damaging strike rate

(number of reported damaging wildlife strikes per 100,000

aircraft movements, bottom graph) for commercial (air carrier,

commuter, and air taxi service) and general aviation aircraft,

USA, 1990–2009 (see Tables 2 and 3).

64
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

vi

Figure 4. The percentage of reported bird and bat strikes (top graph) and

deer and other terrestrial mammal strikes (bottom graph) with

civil aircraft by month, USA, 1990–2009. In addition, 110 strikes

with reptiles were reported, of which 58 percent occurred in

May–July. Deer strikes were comprised of 879 white-tailed deer,

55 mule deer, and 30 deer not identified to species.

65

Figure 5. Number of reported bird strikes with commercial (top graph) and

general aviation (bottom graph) aircraft in USA from 1990–2009

as a function of 18 1,000-foot height intervals from 501–1,500

feet (interval 1) to 17,501–18,500 feet (interval 18) above ground

level. Above 500 feet, the number of reported strikes declined

consistently by 33 percent and 41 percent for each 1,000 foot

gain in height for commercial and general aviation aircraft,

respectively. The negative exponential equations explained 97

to 98 percent of the variation in number of strikes by 1000-foot

intervals from 500 to 18,500 feet. See Tables 10 and 11 for

sample sizes.

66

Figure 6. The percentage of reported bird strikes (top graph) and

terrestrial mammal strikes (bottom graph) that indicated damage

to the civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009. See Tables 1 and 13 for

sample sizes and classifications of damage.

67

Figure 7. The percentage of reported bird strikes with civil aircraft in which

the bird was identified to species, USA, 1990–2009. See Tables

1 and 15 for sample sizes.

68

LIST OF APPENDICES

Appendix A. Selected significant wildlife strikes to U.S. civil aircraft, 2009 70
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

vii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The database files and support programs used to enter and organize strike data initially

were established by E. LeBoeuf and J. Rapol, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA),

Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, DC, and were subsequently

updated by A. M. Dickey and A. Newman, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University,

Prescott, AZ. E. C. Cleary, who retired from the FAA in 2007, was instrumental in

developing and co-authoring previous reports in this series. We acknowledge his longstanding contributions to the database. We greatly appreciate the assistance provided

by these above-acknowledged professionals. S. Agrawal and R. King, FAA William J.

Hughes Technical Center, Atlantic City, NJ, also provided critical support and advice.

Finally, we acknowledge and thank all of the people who took the time and effort to

report wildlife strikes — pilots, mechanics, control tower personnel, airport operations

personnel, airline flight safety officers, USDA, Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service (APHIS), Wildlife Services biologists, and many others. Sponsorship and funds

for the ongoing maintenance and analysis of the FAA National Wildlife Strike Database

are provided by the FAA, Office of Airport Safety and Standards, Washington, DC;

Airports Division, Airport Technology Branch, FAA William J. Hughes Technical Center,

Atlantic City, NJ; and the Office of the Deputy Administrator, USDA APHIS Wildlife

Services Program.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

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Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

ix

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The emergency forced landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River on 15

January 2009 after Canada geese were ingested in both engines on the Airbus 320

dramatically demonstrated to the public that bird strikes are a serious aviation safety

issue. However, the civil and military aviation communities have long recognized that

the threat from aircraft collisions with wildlife (wildlife strikes) is real and increasing.

Globally, wildlife strikes have killed more than 229 people and destroyed over 210

aircraft since 1988. Factors that contribute to this increasing threat are growing

populations of large birds and increasing air traffic by quieter, turbofan-powered aircraft.

This report presents a summary analysis of data from the National Wildlife Strike

Database (NWSD) for the 20-year period 1990 through 2009. To supplement the

statistical summary of data, a sample of significant wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the

USA during 2009 is also presented to demonstrate the widespread and diverse nature of

the problem.

The number of strikes annually reported has increased five-fold from 1,793 in 1990 to

9,474 in 2009 (99,411 for 1990–2009). During the five years between 2004 and 2008,

there was an average of 20 reported wildlife strikes/ day. This increased to an average

of 26 reported strikes per day in 2009; a 25-percent rise from 2008 and the largest

single-year increase (1,872) for reported strikes. Birds were involved in 97.2 percent of

the strikes, terrestrial mammals in 2.3 percent, bats in 0.4 percent, and reptiles in 0.1

percent. Although the number of reported strikes has steadily increased, the number of

reported damaging strikes has actually declined from 765 in 2000 to 601 in 2009.

Fifty-two percent of bird strikes occurred between July and October; 31 percent of deer

strikes occurred in October and November. Terrestrial mammals are more likely to be

struck at night (63 percent), whereas birds are struck more often during the day (62

percent). Both birds (61 percent) and terrestrial mammals (63 percent) are more likely to

be struck during the landing (i.e., descent, approach, or landing roll) phase of flight

compared to take-off and climb (37 percent and 34 percent, respectively).

For commercial and general aviation (GA) aircraft, 72 and 76 percent of bird strikes,

respectively, occurred at or below 500 feet above ground level (AGL). Above 500 feet

AGL, the number of strikes declined by 33 percent for each 1,000-foot gain in height for

commercial aircraft, and by 41 percent for GA aircraft.

From 1990 to 2009, 415 species of birds and 35 species of terrestrial mammals have

been identified as struck by aircraft. Waterfowl, gulls, and raptors are the species groups

of birds with the most damaging strikes; artiodactyls (mainly deer) and carnivores (mainly

coyotes) are the terrestrial mammals with the most damaging strikes. Although the

percentage of bird strikes causing damage has averaged 14 percent for the 20-year

period, this number has declined from 20 percent in 1990 to 9 percent in 2009. For

terrestrial mammals (20-year average of 61 percent), the decline has been from 86
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

x

percent in 1990 to 32 percent in 2009. Overall, 55 strikes have resulted in a destroyed

aircraft; 33 (60 percent) of these occurred at GA airports.

This annual report is based on information from a portion of the available data fields

contained in the NWSD. These reports provided summary information on the nature of

wildlife strikes in a format that continues to be found useful by the aviation industry. The

NWSD was made available by the FAA to the public on April 24, 2009, and interested

parties now have the opportunity to query and examine the data independently at the

newly updated FAA wildlife strike database website (http://wildlife.faa.gov). The new site

has search fields that enable users to find data on specific airports, airlines, aircraft, and

engine types, as well as damage incurred, date of strike, species struck, and state

without having to download the entire database. The FAA also developed software to

make strike reporting easier. Now, anyone who needs to report a wildlife strike can do

so via the web or mobile devices like the Blackberry and iPhone. Although wildlife strike

reporting is voluntary, and in some cases uneven, it has steadily increased and

continues to provide adequate data to determine national trends and for the development

of national policy. Analyses of the database can produce dissimilar comparisons that

involve subject matter such as airports and airlines. Disparities that contribute to this

variability include the presence/ absence of an airport-based wildlife hazard

management program, integration of internal airline and airport strike reporting with the

NWSD, variability in geography and topography of the airport, on-site and off-site

habitats and wildlife attractants, aircraft type, number and time of day of aircraft

movements, and the proximity of seasonal avian migration routes. Although the largest

single-year increase for reported strikes occurred in 2009, there continues to be a need

for increased reporting from GA airports, various certificated airports, and airlines and

more detailed reporting of information (i.e., species identification, damage incurred,

estimated costs) about wildlife strikes.

The successful mitigation efforts at airports that have reduced damaging strikes in recent

years, which must be sustained, have done little to reduce strikes outside the airport

such as occurred with US Airways Flight 1549 in 2009 (Dolbeer 2011, in press1).

Consequently, additional measures are needed. First, the general public and aviation

community must widen its view of wildlife management to consider habitats and land

uses that attract hazardous wildlife within 5 miles of airports. Second, on-going research

and mitigation efforts to further develop bird-detecting radar and bird migration

forecasting and to study avian sensory perception to enhance aircraft detection and

avoidance by birds should be maintained. Finally, Federal regulations and guidance on

wildlife hazards at airports should continue to be reviewed and where necessary revised

to incorporate new information about wildlife hazards and wildlife strike reporting trends.

The FAA is taking a number of actions in these areas.

Effective and resourceful mitigation of wildlife hazards depends, in part, on quality strike

data. There continues to be a need for increased and more detailed reporting of

information about wildlife strikes. The FAA is focusing on improving the reporting rates

of those airports and air carriers not fully participating in the program and in the transfer

1

“In press” means the paper being cited has been officially accepted for publication but has not yet been published.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

xi

of data from miscellaneous FAA and industry databases under the existing voluntary

system. Outreach efforts initiated to increase the quantity and quality of strike reports

include the aforementioned updated FAA wildlife strike database website

(http://wildlife.faa.gov), new strike reporting capabilities via mobile devices like the

Blackberry and iPhone, and the creation of informational posters, placards, and quick

reference thumb guides. The FAA and USDA have also increased outreach efforts

through cooperative efforts with the Bird Strike Committee USA, Embry Riddle

Aeronautical University, and various leading groups in the aviation community.

An Embraer 120 struck a white pelican at 2,600 feet above ground level after

departure from an airport in Utah on 31 July 2009. The aircraft returned

safely to the airport with the bird lodged in the radome. The aircraft was out

of service for 48 hours; cost of repairs was $150,000. Photo courtesy G.

Rokich.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

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Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

1

WILDLIFE STRIKES TO CIVIL AIRCRAFT IN THE UNITED STATES,

1990–2009

INTRODUCTION

The emergency forced landing of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River on 15

January 2009 after Canada geese were ingested in both engines on the Airbus 320

(National Transportation Safety Board 2009, Marra et al. 2009) dramatically

demonstrated to the public that bird strikes are a serious aviation safety issue.

However, the civil and military aviation communities have long recognized that the

threat to human health and safety from aircraft collisions with wildlife (wildlife

strikes) is real and increasing (Dolbeer 2000, MacKinnon et al. 2001). Globally,

wildlife strikes have killed more than 229 people and destroyed over 220 aircraft

since 1988 (Richardson and West 2000; Thorpe 2003; 2005; Dolbeer, unpublished

data). Three factors that contribute to this increasing threat:

On 4 November 2009, a western grebe penetrated the windshield and injured

the pilot of this Beechcraft 99 aircraft at about 6,800 feet above ground level on

approach to an airport in Arizona. The pilot made an emergency landing.

Photo courtesy K. Patterson.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

2

1. Many populations of wildlife species commonly involved in strikes have

increased markedly in the last few decades and adapted to living in urban

environments, including airports. For example, from 1980 to 2007, the resident

(non-migratory) Canada goose population in the USA and Canada increased at

a mean rate of 7.3 percent per year (Sauer et al. 2008). Other species showing

significant mean annual rates of increase included bald eagles (4.6 percent),

wild turkeys (12.1 percent), turkey vultures (2.2 percent), American white

pelicans (2.9 percent), double-crested cormorants (4.0 percent), and sandhill

cranes (5.0 percent). Thirteen of the 14 bird species in North America with

mean body masses greater than 8 pounds have shown significant population

increases over the past three decades (Dolbeer and Eschenfelder 2003). The

white-tailed deer population increased from a low of about 350,000 in 1900 to

over 30 million in the past decade (Adams et al. 2009, McCabe and McCabe

1997, Hubbard et al. 2000).

2. Concurrent with population increases of many large bird species, air traffic has

increased since 1980. Passenger enplanements in the USA increased from

about 310 million in 1980 to 690 million in 2009 (2.8 percent per year), and

commercial air traffic increased from about 18 million aircraft movements in

1980 to 26 million in 2009 (1.2 percent per year, Federal Aviation Administration

2010). USA commercial air traffic is predicted to continue growing at a rate of

about 1.2 percent per year to 37 million movements by 2030.

3. Commercial air carriers have replaced their older three- or four-engine aircraft

fleets with more efficient and quieter, two-engine aircraft. In 1965, about 90

percent of the 2,100 USA passenger aircraft had three or four engines. In 2005,

the USA passenger fleet had grown to about 8,200 aircraft, and only about 10

percent had three or four engines (U.S. Department of Transportation 2009).

With the steady advances in technology over the past several decades, today’s

two-engine aircraft are more powerful than yesterday’s three- and four-engine

aircraft, and they are more reliable. However, in the event of a multiple ingestion

event (e.g., the US Airways Flight 1549 incident on 15 January 2009), aircraft

with two engines may have vulnerabilities not shared by their three- or fourengine-equipped counterparts. In addition, previous research has indicated that

birds are less able to detect and avoid modern jet aircraft with quieter turbofan

engines (Chapter 3, International Civil Aviation Organization 1993) than older

aircraft with noisier (Chapter 2) engines (Burger 1983, Kelly et al. 1999).

As a result of these factors, experts within the Federal Aviation Administration

(FAA), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), U.S. Navy, and U.S. Air Force

expect the risk of wildlife-aircraft collisions to be a continuing challenge over the

next decade.

The FAA has initiated several programs to address this important safety issue.

Among the various programs is the collection and analysis of data from wildlife

strikes. The FAA began collecting wildlife strike data in 1965. However, except for
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

3

cursory examinations of the strike reports to determine general trends, the data

were never submitted to rigorous analysis until the 1990s. In 1995, the FAA,

through an interagency agreement with the USDA, Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service (APHIS), Wildlife Services (WS), initiated a project to obtain

more objective estimates of the magnitude and nature of the national wildlife strike

problem for civil aviation. This project involves having specialists from the WS

program: (1) edit all strike reports (FAA Form 5200-7, Bird/Other Wildlife Strike

Report) received by the FAA since 1990 to ensure consistent, error-free data; (2)

enter all edited strike reports in the NWSD; (3) supplement FAA-reported strikes

with additional, non-duplicated strike reports

from other sources; (4) provide the FAA with

an updated computer file each month

containing all edited strike reports; and (5)

assist the FAA with the production of annual

and special reports summarizing the results of

analyses of the data from the NWSD. Such

analyses are critical to determining the

economic cost of wildlife strikes, the

magnitude of safety issues, and most

important, the nature of the problems (e.g.,

wildlife species involved, types of damage,

height and phase of flight during which strikes

occur, and seasonal patterns). The

information obtained from these analyses

provides the foundation for FAA policies and

guidance and for refinements in the

development, implementation, and justification

of integrated research and management

efforts to reduce wildlife strikes.

The first annual report on wildlife strikes to

civil aircraft in the USA, covering 1994, was

completed in November 1995 (Dolbeer et al.

1995). Since then we have published

subsequent reports covering the years 1993–1995, 1992–1996, 1991–1997, 1990–

1998, 1990–1999, 1990–2000, 1990–2001, 1990-2002, 1990-2003, 1990-2004,

1990-2005, 1990-2006, 1990-2007, and 1990–2008 (Cleary et al. 1996, 1997,

1998, 1999, 2000, 2002a, 2002b, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007; Dolbeer and

Wright 2008, Dolbeer et al. 2009). This is the 16th report in the series and covers

the 20-year period of 1990 through 2009. The current and historic annual reports

are accessible as PDF documents at http://wildlife.faa.gov.

This report presents a summary analysis of data from the FAA’s National Wildlife

Strike Database for the 20-year period 1990 through 2009. Unless noted otherwise,

all totals are for the 20-year period, and percentages are of the total known.

A medical Eurocopter 135

struck a black vulture on 8

November 2009 in North

Carolina while en route,

causing substantial damage to

the tail. Aircraft made

emergency landing in

residential yard. Photo courtesy

J. Gusler.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

4

Because of the large amount of data, most tables do not display data for individual

years.

To supplement the statistical summary of data presented in tables and graphs, a

sample of significant wildlife strikes to civil aircraft in the USA during 2009 is

presented in Appendix A. These recent strike examples demonstrate the

widespread and diverse nature of the problem. A more extensive list of significant

strike events (1990-2009) and additional resources and reports are available at

http://wildlife.faa.gov.

RESULTS

NUMBER OF REPORTED STRIKES

For the 20-year period (1990–2009), 99,411 strikes were reported to the FAA. Birds

were involved in 97.2 percent of the reported strikes, terrestrial mammals in 2.3

percent, bats in 0.4 percent, and reptiles in 0.1 percent (Table 1).

The number of strikes annually reported has increased five-fold from 1,793 in 1990

to 9,474 in 2009 (Table 1, Figure 1). The 25-percent increase in reported strikes

from 2008 to 2009 was the largest 1-year increase recorded. We suggest that the

increase in reports of strikes, especially in 2009 following the Airbus 320 forcedlanding in the Hudson River (NTSB

2010), primarily has been a result of

an increased awareness of the wildlife

strike issue and cooperation within the

aviation industry to report strikes.

Although the number of reported

strikes has steadily increased, it is

important to note that the number of

reported damaging strikes has actually

declined in recent years. The number

of reported strikes with damage to

aircraft increased from 372 in 1990 to

a peak of 765 in 2000. This number

has subsequently declined by 21

percent to 601 in 2009 (Table 1, Figure

2). For commercial aircraft, the rate of

damaging strikes (number per 100,000

aircraft movements) has also declined

since 2000 (Table 2, Figures 3). The

rate of damaging strikes with general

aviation (GA) aircraft has remained

An MD-90 departing an Arizona airport on

2 November 2009 struck two western

grebes at 9,300 feet above ground level.

One grebe tore the fuselage above the

eyebrow window, activating the

depressurization alarm. The aircraft

returned to airport safely. Photo courtesy

L. Duncan.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

5

stable since 1997 (Table 3, Figure 3). These declines in damaging strikes for

commercial aviation have occurred in spite of an increase in populations of

hazardous wildlife species (Dolbeer 2000, Dolbeer and Eschenfelder 2003).

In May 2009, the FAA authorized a study through the FAA Airport Technology

Research and Development Branch to review the NWSD and determine the current

level of reporting and if it is sufficient to determine national trends. The study also

reviewed whether strike reporting should be mandated and how the FAA can

increase its data collection.

This study (Dolbeer 2009a,b) identified that the total number of strikes reported has

increased from 20 percent during the period from 1990 to 1994 to 39 percent from

2004 to 2008 at airports certificated under 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)

Part 139. Although there is a higher level of reporting, the number of damaging

strikes has not increased. This important fact is attributed to the successful

implementation of professionally run wildlife hazard programs at many certificated

airports. The current overall reporting rate of 39 percent is adequate to determine

national trends in wildlife strikes, determine the hazard level of wildlife species that

are being struck, and provide a scientific foundation for FAA policies and guidance

on the mitigation of risk from wildlife strikes. As these are the main purposes of the

NWSD, the FAA does not believe mandatory reporting is required at this time.

The study did identify reporting gaps among certificated airports, air carriers, and

general aviation (GA) airports. Less than 6 percent of all strike reports come from

GA airports identified in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS),

and reporting rates average less than

1/20 of the rates at Part 139 airports.

From 2004 to 2008, 84 (16 percent) Part

139 airports and 2,170 (85 percent) of the

2,560 NPIAS GA airports did not have a

single strike reported. As a result, the

FAA is conducting outreach with the

aviation community and investigating the

availability of alternative strike data

sources to close these reporting gaps.

The FAA also simplified strike reporting in

July 2010 through the use of mobile

devices and previously available online

reporting. Now, anyone who needs to

report a wildlife strike can do so via the

web or their mobile devices. Additionally,

continued emphasis on strike reporting

requirements often incorporated into

airport Wildlife Hazard Management Plans

and annual wildlife hazard awareness

training programs for airport personnel

A B-727 on final approach into a midsouthern USA airport at night on 29

September 2009 struck several

migrating great egrets. Besides

damage to the captain’s windshield,

bird remains were ingested in two

engines. The plane landed safely.

Photo courtesy FedEx.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

6

should continue to benefit strike reporting.

METHODS OF REPORTING STRIKES

Most (68 percent) of the 99,411 strike reports submitted between 1990 and 2009

were filed using the paper (40 percent) or electronic (28 percent) version of FAA

Form 5200-7, Bird/Other Wildlife Strike Report. Since the online version of this form

became available in April 2001, use of the electronic reporting system has climbed

dramatically. In 2009, 71 percent of the strike reports were submitted electronically

compared to 20 percent in 2002 (Table 4).

SOURCE OF REPORTS

Airline personnel and pilots filed 28 percent and 24 percent of the strike reports,

respectively, whereas 34 percent of known strikes were reported by airport ground

personnel (Table 5). About 85 percent of the reported strikes involved commercial

aircraft; the remainder involved business, private, and government aircraft (Table 6).

Reports were received from all 50 states, from some USA territories, and from

foreign countries when USA-registered aircraft were involved (Table 7). California,

Texas, Florida, and New York had the most bird strike reports (8,347; 7,063; 6,230;

and 5,237, respectively). Eleven other states each had more than 2,000 bird strikes

reported. New York, Colorado, California, Texas, Illinois, New Jersey, and Michigan

each had greater than 100 terrestrial mammal strikes. In all, strikes were reported

at 1,822 airports (1,585 airports in the USA and 237 foreign airports where USAbased aircraft were involved).

TIMING OF OCCURRENCE AND PHASE OF FLIGHT OF STRIKES

Most bird strikes (52 percent) occurred between July and October (Figure 4); 62

percent occurred during the day (Table 8); 61 percent occurred during the landing

(descent, approach, or landing roll) phase of flight; and 37 percent occurred during

take-off run and climb (Table 9).

Most terrestrial mammal strikes occurred between July and November; with 31

percent of deer strikes concentrated in October-November (Figure 4). Most

terrestrial mammal strikes (63 percent) occurred at night (Table 8), 63 percent

occurred during the final approach or landing roll, and 34 percent occurred during

the take-off run or initial climb (Table 9).

HEIGHT ABOVE GROUND LEVEL (AGL) OF STRIKES

Commercial aircraft – About 41 percent of the bird strikes with commercial aircraft

occurred when the aircraft was at 0 feet AGL, 72 percent occurred at 500 feet or

less AGL, and 92 percent occurred at or below 3,500 feet AGL (Table 10). Less

than 1 percent of bird strikes occurred above 10,500 feet AGL. Above 500 feet

AGL, the number of reported strikes declined consistently by 33 percent for each
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

7

1,000-foot gain in height (Figure 5). The record height for a reported bird strike

involving a commercial aircraft in USA was 30,000 feet AGL.

General aviation (GA) aircraft – About 40 percent of the bird strikes with GA

aircraft occurred when the aircraft was at 0 feet AGL, 76 percent occurred at 500

feet or less AGL, and 97 percent occurred at or below 3,500 feet AGL (Table 11).

Less than 1 percent of bird strikes occurred above 10,500 feet AGL. Above 500 feet

AGL, the number of reported strikes declined consistently by 41 percent for each

1,000-foot gain in height (Figure 5). The record height for a reported bird strike

involving a GA aircraft in USA was 32,500 feet AGL.

Terrestrial mammal strikes predominately occurred at 0 feet AGL; however, 9

percent of the reported strikes occurred while the aircraft was in the air (e.g., when

the aircraft struck deer or other wildlife with the landing gear) (Table 9).

AIRCRAFT COMPONENTS DAMAGED

The aircraft components most commonly reported as struck by birds were the

nose/radome, windshield, engine, wing/rotor, and fuselage (Table 12). Aircraft

engines were the component most frequently reported as being damaged by bird

strikes (31 percent of all damaged components). There were 11,907 strike events in

which a total of 12,493 engines were

reported as struck (11,343 events with

one engine struck, 547 with two

engines struck, 12 with three engines

struck, and 5 with four engines

struck). In 3,638 damaging bird strike

events involving engines, a total of

3,757 engines were damaged (3,522

events with one engine damaged, 114

with two engines damaged, 1 with

three engines damaged, and 1 with

four engines damaged).

Aircraft components most commonly

reported as struck by terrestrial

mammals were the landing gear,

propeller, and wing/rotor. These

same components ranked highest for

the parts most often reported as

damaged by mammals (Table 12).

REPORTED DAMAGE AND EFFECT-ON-FLIGHT

Of the 96,626 bird strikes reported, 74,855 provided some indication as to the

nature and extent of any damage. Of these 74,855 reports, 64,670 (86 percent)

On 14 November 2009, an Airbus 319

departing a central USA airport ingested

snow geese into both engines at 4,000 feet

above ground level. The #2 engine lost

power. Pilot made an emergency landing

at airport. Cost of repairs was $2.7 million.

Photo courtesy B. Johnson.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

8

indicated the strike did not damage the aircraft; 5,407 (7 percent) indicated the

aircraft suffered minor damage; 2,569 (3 percent) indicated the aircraft suffered

substantial damage; 2,178 (3 percent) reported an uncertain level of damage; and

31 reports (less than 1 percent) indicated the aircraft was destroyed as a result of

the strike (Table 13).

Of the 2,307 terrestrial mammal strikes reported, 1,499 reports provided some

indication as to the nature and extent of any damage. Of these 1,499 reports, 582

(39 percent) indicated the strike did not damage the aircraft; 484 (32 percent)

indicated the aircraft suffered minor damage; 348 (23 percent) indicated the aircraft

suffered substantial damage; 61 (4 percent) reported an uncertain level of damage;

and 24 (2 percent) indicated the aircraft was destroyed as a result of the strike

(Table 13). Not surprisingly, a much higher percentage of terrestrial mammal strikes

(61 percent) resulted in aircraft damage than did bird strikes (14 percent). Deer

(964 strikes, Table 15) were involved in 42 percent of the 2,307 terrestrial mammal

strikes.

Although the percentage of bird strikes causing damage averaged 14 percent for the

20-year period, this number has declined from 20 percent in 1990 to 9 percent in

2009. For terrestrial mammals (20-year average of 61 percent), the decline has

been from 86 percent in 1990 to 32 percent in 2009 (Figure 6).

In 12 percent and 53 percent of the bird and terrestrial mammal strike reports,

respectively, an adverse effect-on-flight was reported (Table 14). Three percent of

bird strikes resulted in an aborted take-off compared to 17 percent of terrestrial

mammal strikes.

WILDLIFE SPECIES INVOLVED IN STRIKES

Table 15 shows the number of reported

strikes, strikes causing damage, strikes

having a negative effect-on-flight, strikes

involving more than one animal, the

reported aircraft down time, and the

reported costs by identified wildlife

species for the 20-year period, 1990

through 2009.

Overall, 43,410 (45 percent) of the 96,626

bird strike reports provided information on

the type of bird (e.g., gull or hawk).

Furthermore, 28,469 (66 percent) of these

43,410 reports provided identification to

species level (e.g., ring-billed gull or redtailed hawk, Table 15). Thus, birds were

identified to species level in 29 percent of the 96,626 reported bird strikes for the

Turkey vultures, because of their size

and soaring behavior, are one of the

most hazardous bird species to

aviation. From 1990–2009, 363 strikes

involving turkey vultures and civil

aircraft were reported in USA.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

9

period. Species identification has improved from less than 20 percent in the early

1990s to over 40 percent in 2008–2009 (Figure 7). In all, 415 species of birds have

been identified as struck by aircraft, and 186 of these species were reported as

causing damage during the 20-year period.

Gulls (18 percent), doves/pigeons (15 percent), raptors (13 percent), and waterfowl

(8 percent) were the most frequently struck bird groups (Table 16). Gulls were

involved in 2.3 times more strikes than waterfowl (7,894 and 3,391, respectively).

Waterfowl, however, were involved in 1.2 times more damaging strikes (1,503 or 30

percent of all damaging strikes in which the bird type was identified) than were gulls

(1,204 or 24 percent of all damaging strikes in which the bird type was identified).

Gulls were responsible for the greatest number of bird strikes (1,862 or 21 percent)

that involved multiple birds.

The most frequently struck terrestrial mammals were artiodactyls — primarily deer

(44 percent) — and carnivores — primarily coyotes (32 percent) (Tables 15, 16).

Artiodactyls were responsible for 93 percent of the mammal strikes that resulted in

damage and 81 percent of the mammal strikes that involved multiple animals. In all,

35 identified species of terrestrial mammals and 8 identified species of bats were

reported struck; 20 identified species of terrestrial mammals and 1 identified species

of bat caused damage (Table 15).

Table 17 ranks the 97 species of

birds and 12 species of terrestrial

mammals with 25 or more reported

strikes (Table 15) by the percentage

of strikes that resulted in damage to

the aircraft. This ranking provides a

means of objectively estimating the

relative hazard level of species to

aircraft operations.

HUMAN FATALITIES AND INJURIES DUE

TO WILDLIFE STRIKES

For the 20-year period, reports were

received of 10 wildlife strikes that

resulted in 24 human fatalities. Five

of these strikes resulting in 7

fatalities involved unidentified

species of birds. Red-tailed hawks

(8), American white pelicans (5),

Canada geese (2), white-tailed deer

(1), and brown-pelicans (1) were

responsible for the other 17 fatalities. Reports were received of 174 strikes that

resulted in 217 human injuries. Waterfowl (ducks and geese; 42 strikes, 47 humans

From 1990–2009, at least 16 species of gulls

were involved in 7,893 reported strikes with

civil aircraft in the USA. It is widely recognized

that open-faced, putrescible waste landfills

and garbage containers attract gulls — the

most frequently struck group of birds in the

USA. However, these landfills and garbage

containers also can attract other birds

hazardous to aviation.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

10

injured), vultures (25 strikes, 27 injuries), and deer (20 strikes, 27 injuries) caused

87 (62 percent) of the 140 strikes resulting in injuries in which the species or species

group was identified.

AIRCRAFT DESTROYED DUE TO WILDLIFE STRIKES

For the 20-year period, reports were received of 55 aircraft destroyed or damaged

beyond repair due to wildlife strikes (Tables 13, 18). The majority (35 or 64 percent)

were small (less than 2,250 kg maximum take-off mass) GA aircraft. Terrestrial

mammals (primarily white-tailed deer) were responsible for 24 (44 percent) of the

incidents. Canada geese (5 incidents) and vultures (3 incidents) were responsible

for 8 (42 percent) of the 19 incidents involving birds in which the species or species

group was identified.

Thirty-three (60 percent) of the 55 wildlife strikes resulting in a destroyed aircraft

occurred at GA airports, 14 occurred away from an airport, 7 occurred at Part 139

airports, and 1 occurred at a foreign airport certificated for passenger service (Table

18). General aviation airports, often located in rural areas with inadequate fencing

to exclude large mammals, face unique challenges in mitigating wildlife risks to

aviation (DeVault et al. 2008; Dolbeer et al. 2008).

ECONOMIC LOSSES DUE TO WILDLIFE STRIKES

Although the number of reported strikes has steadily increased five-fold from 1,793

in 1990 to 9,474 in 2009 (99,411 for 1990–2009), the number of reported damaging

strikes has actually declined from 765 in 2000 to 601 in 2009. For the 20-year

period, reported losses from bird strikes totaled 424,936 hours of aircraft downtime

and $374.9 million in monetary losses. Reported losses from terrestrial mammal

strikes totaled 258,250 hours of aircraft downtime and $39.7 million in monetary

losses. Bat strikes resulted in 102 hours of aircraft downtime and $3.2 million in

losses. Reptile strikes resulted in 3 hours of aircraft downtime (Table 15).

Of the 16,518 reports that indicated the strike had an adverse effect on the aircraft

and/or flight, 4,853 provided an estimate of the aircraft down time

( = 683,291 hours, avg. = 140.8 hours down time/incident, Table 19). Of the

reports providing a damage cost estimate for the incident, 2,828 gave an estimate of

the direct aircraft damage cost ( = $372.7 million, avg. = $131,798

damage/incident), and 1,340 gave an estimate of other monetary losses ( = $45.0

million, avg. = $33,603 lost/incident). Other monetary losses include such expenses

as lost revenue, the cost of putting passengers in hotels, re-scheduling aircraft, and

flight cancellations.

Analysis of 14 groups of strike reports from three Part 139 airports certificated for

passenger service and three airlines for the years 1991 to 2004 indicated that 11 to

21 percent of all strikes were reported to the FAA (Cleary et al. 2005, Wright and

Dolbeer 2005). An independent analysis of strike data for a certificated airport in
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

11

Hawaii in the 1990s indicated a similar reporting rate (Linnell et al. 1999). Analyses

of strike data from 2004 to 2008 indicated strike reporting at Part 139 airports had

improved to 39 percent (Dolbeer 2009a). Strike reporting for GA aircraft is

estimated at less than 5 percent (Dolbeer et al. 2008, Dolbeer 2009a). In addition to

the underreporting of strikes at GA airports, only 28 percent of the 16,518 reports

from 1990 to 2009 indicating an adverse effect provided estimates of aircraft

downtime, 17 percent provided estimates of direct costs, and 8 percent provided

estimates of other (indirect) costs (Table 19). Furthermore, many reports providing

cost estimates were filed before aircraft damage and downtime had been fully

assessed. The FAA is working to improve the percentage of strike reports from GA

aircraft.

Assuming (1) all 16,518 reported wildlife strikes that had an adverse effect on the

aircraft and/or flight engendered similar amounts of downtime and/or monetary

losses and (2) that these reports are all of the damaging strikes that occurred, then

at a minimum, wildlife strikes cost the USA civil aviation industry 116,285 hours per

year of aircraft downtime and $137 million in monetary losses ($109 million per year

in direct costs and $28 million per year in associated costs, Table 19).

Further, if we assume that the 16,518 reported strikes indicating an adverse effect

represent, on average, 20 percent of the total strikes that occurred with commercial

and GA aircraft from 1990 to 2009, the annual cost of wildlife strikes to the USA civil

aviation industry is estimated to be 581,424 hours of aircraft downtime and $683

million in monetary losses ($544

million per year in direct costs

and $139 million per year in

associated costs, Table 19).

CONCLUSIONS

This analysis of 20 years of strike

data reveals the magnitude and

nature of wildlife strikes with civil

aircraft in the USA and

documents that progress is being

made in reducing damaging

strikes. Although wildlife strikes

continue to pose a significant

economic and safety risk for civil

aviation in the USA, management

actions to mitigate the risk have

been implemented at many

airports in the past decade (e.g.,

Wenning et al. 2004, DeFusco et

al. 2005, Dolbeer 2006a, Human

Wildlife Conflicts Journal 2009). These efforts are likely responsible for the general

Mitigating the risk of wildlife strikes at and in the

vicinity of airports requires a comprehensive

assessment of the hazardous wildlife species

present and the supportive foods and habitats.

Based on the assessment, a wildlife hazard

management plan must be developed to eliminate

these attractants and to disperse hazardous

species. Photo courtesy USDA.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

12

decline in reported strikes with damage from 2000 to 2009 (Figures 2, 3) in spite of

continued increases in populations of Canada geese and other large bird species.

For example, USDA/APHIS/WS biologists provided assistance at 822 airports

nationwide in 2009 to mitigate wildlife risks to aviation compared to only 42 airports

in 1991 and 193 in 1998 (Begier and Dolbeer 2010). However, much work remains

to be done to reduce wildlife strikes.

To address the problem, airport managers first need to assess the wildlife hazards

on their airports with the help of qualified airport wildlife biologists (FAA Advisory

Circular 150/5200-36). They then must take appropriate actions, under the

guidance of professional biologists trained in wildlife damage management at

airports, to minimize the risks posed by wildlife.

The manual Wildlife Hazard Management at Airports (Cleary and Dolbeer 2005)

provides guidance to airport personnel and biologists on conducting wildlife hazard

assessments and developing and implementing wildlife hazard management plans.

PDF versions of the manual are available online in English, Spanish, and French at

http://wildlife.faa.gov. The Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Report

32: Guidebook for Addressing Aircraft/Wildlife Hazards at General Aviation Airports

(Cleary and Dickey 2010) provides similar guidance but specifically for the GA

airport community.

Management efforts to reduce the risks of bird strikes have primarily focused on

airports since various historical analyses of bird strike data for civil aviation have

indicated the majority of strikes occur in this environment (during take-off and

landing at <500 feet above ground level). Dolbeer (2011, in press) conducted a

trend analysis of bird strike data involving commercial air carriers that indicated the

percentage of all strikes that occurred at more than 500 feet increased significantly

from about 25 percent in 1990 to 30 percent in 2009. The percentage of all

damaging strikes that occurred at more than 500 feet increased at a greater rate,

from about 37 percent in the early 1990s to 45 percent in 2005 to 2009. Dolbeer

(2011, in press) also examined trends in strike rates (strikes/1 million commercial

aircraft movements) for strikes occurring at less than or equal to and more than 500

feet. From 1990 to 2009, the damaging strike rate at more than 500 feet increased

from about 2.5 to 4.0, whereas the damaging strike rate for strikes at 500 or less

feet has remained stable since 2000. The successful mitigation efforts at airports

that have reduced damaging strikes in recent years, which must be sustained, have

done little to reduce strikes outside the airport such as occurred with US Airways

Flight 1549 in 2009 (Dolbeer 2011, in press).

First, the general public and aviation community must widen its view of wildlife

management to consider habitats and land uses within 5 miles of airports.

Wetlands, dredge-spoil containment areas, municipal solid waste landfills, and

wildlife refuges can attract hazardous wildlife. Such land uses, as discussed in FAA

Advisory Circular 150/5200-33B, Hazardous Wildlife Attractants on or Near

Airports,, are often incompatible with aviation safety and should either be prohibited
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

13

near airports or designed and operated in a manner that minimizes the attraction of

hazardous wildlife. Second, on-going research and mitigation efforts to further

develop and incorporate avian radar and bird migration forecasting and to study

avian sensory perception to enhance aircraft detection and avoidance by birds

should be maintained. Third, Federal regulations and guidance on wildlife hazards

at airports should continue to be reviewed, and where necessary revised, to

incorporate new information about wildlife hazards and wildlife strike reporting

trends. Finally, there continues to be a need for increased and more detailed

reporting of information about wildlife strikes, such as species identification and

number of wildlife struck, time and altitude of strike, and damage estimation and/or

final cost.

Cleary et al. (2005), Wright and Dolbeer (2005), and Dolbeer (2009a) indicated that

strike reporting at Part 139 airports has increased from about 20 percent in the

1990s to 39 percent in 2004 to 2008. The percentage of bird strikes in which the

bird was identified to species has improved from less than 20 percent in the early

1990s to over 40 percent in 2008 to 2009. Overall, only 17 percent of strike reports

indicating an adverse effect on the aircraft or flight provided at least a partial

estimate of economic losses resulting from the strike for the 20-year reporting

period.

REPORTING A STRIKE AND IDENTIFYING SPECIES OF WILDLIFE STRUCK

Pilots, air traffic controllers, airport operations, aircraft maintenance personnel, and

anyone else having knowledge of a strike should report the incident to the FAA

using FAA Form 5200-7. Strikes can be reported electronically via the internet

(http://wildlife.faa.gov) and mobile devices, or Form 5200-7 can be accessed and

printed for mailing in reports.

It is important to include as much information as possible on FAA Form 5200-7. All

reports are carefully screened to identify duplicate reports prior to being entered into

the database. Reports of the same incident filed by different people are combined

and often provide a more complete record of the strike event than would be possible

if just one report were filed.

The identification of the exact species of wildlife struck (e.g., ring-billed gull, Canada

goose, mallard, mourning dove, or red-tailed hawk as opposed to gull, goose, duck,

dove, or hawk) is particularly important. This species information is critical for

biologists developing and implementing wildlife risk management programs at

airports because a problem that cannot be measured or defined cannot be solved.

Bird strike remains that cannot be identified by airport personnel can often be

identified by a local biologist trained in ornithology or by sending feather and other

remains in a sealed plastic bag (with FAA Form 5200-7) to:
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

14

Material sent via Express Mail Service: Material sent via U.S. Postal

Service:

Feather Identification Lab Feather Identification Lab

Smithsonian Institution NMNH Smithsonian Institution NMNH

E600, MRC 116 E600, MRC 116

10th & Constitution Ave NW PO Box 37012

Washington, DC 20560-0116 Washington, DC 20013-7012

(label package “safety investigation

material”)

(not recommended for priority cases)

Phone: 202-633-0787 or 202-633-0791

The number of bird strike cases processed by the Smithsonian Feather

Identification Lab for the FAA (civil aviation) in FY 2009 was 983 with 1,064

separate identifications of species (C. Dove, unpublished data). In addition, the Lab

processed 3,538 cases with 4,355 identifications for the U.S. Air Force and 400

cases with 415 identifications for the Navy (not discussed in this report).

Approximately 18 percent of the bird strike cases submitted for identification

included multiple samples or impact points. DNA analysis was used in 68 percent

of all identifications to identify, supplement, or verify traditional identification

methods.

Whenever possible, reporters should send whole feathers as diagnostic

characteristics are often found in the downy barbules at the feather base. Wings, as

well as breast and tail feathers, should be sent whenever possible. Beaks, feet,

bones, and talons are also useful diagnostic materials. Even blood smears can

provide material for DNA analysis (Dove et al. 2008). Do not send entire bird

carcasses through the mail. However, photographs of the carcasses can be very

useful supplemental documentation.

Guidelines for Collecting Bird Strike Material

 Always include any feather material available.

 Include copy of report (AFSAS, WESS, or FAA 5200-7).

 Always secure all remains in re-sealable plastic bag.

Feathers:

Whole Bird – Pluck a variety of feathers (breast, back, wing, tail)

Partial Bird – Collect a variety of feathers with color or pattern

Feathers only – Send all material available. Do not cut feathers from the bird

(downy part at the base of the feathers is needed). Do not use any sticky

substance (no tape or glue).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

15

Tissue/blood (“Snarge”):

Dry material – Scrape or wipe off into a clean re-closeable bag or wipe area

with pre-packaged alcohol wipe or spray with alcohol to loosen material then

wipe with clean cloth/gauze. (Do not use water, bleach, or other cleansers;

they destroy DNA.)

Fresh material – Wipe area with alcohol wipe and/or clean cloth/gauze or

apply fresh tissue/blood to an FTA® DNA collecting card.

FTA® Micro Card and Sterile Applicators

If you send a lot of fresh blood/ tissue samples for DNA identification, you may want

to consider getting Whatman FTA® DNA cards. The material is sampled with a

sterile applicator and placed onto the surface of the card that “fixes” the DNA in the

sample. For more information on ordering these items contact the Feather Lab.

Note: If you only occasionally send blood/ tissue samples, a paper towel with

alcohol or alcohol wipe is still a good option for this type of material.

Additional information on sending bird remains to the Smithsonian is available at

http://wildlife.faa.gov.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

16

FAA Activities for Mitigating Wildlife Strikes

In 2010, the FAA continued a multifaceted approach for mitigating wildlife strikes.

This included continuing a robust research program, making improvements to the

NWSD and outreach, incorporating new technology to increase and simplify strike

reporting, and providing Airport Improvement Program (AIP) funding to airports to

conduct Wildlife Hazard Assessments (WHAs) and develop Wildlife Hazard

Management Plans (WHMPs).

Strike Reporting

Following the US Airways Flight 1549 accident, there was considerable public

attention on the estimated 20-percent strike reporting rate in the USA. This rate had

been based on studies in the mid 1990s and early 2000s. The FAA believed that

the actual current level of strike reporting was higher because of the proliferation of

wildlife hazard mitigation efforts at airports as well as outreach efforts by the FAA

and the USDA.

As described above, in May 2009, the FAA authorized a study through the FAA

Airport Technology Research and Development Branch to review the National

Wildlife Strike Database and determine the current level of reporting and if it is

sufficient to determine national trends and develop national policy. The report also

reviewed whether strike reporting should be mandated and how the FAA could

increase its data collection. The report (Dolbeer 2009a,b) concluded that the

reporting rate has increased from 20 percent for the period 1990 to1994 to 39

percent for 2004 to 2008 at Part 139 airports.

As there is still room for improvement, the FAA retooled the existing wildlife strike

database website (http://wildlife-mitigation.tc.faa.gov/wildlife/) to make it more userfriendly and to allow more advanced data mining. The new site

(http://wildlife.faa.gov) has search fields that enable users to find data on specific

airports, airlines, aircraft and engine types, as well as damage incurred, date of

strike, species struck, and state without having to download the entire database.

The FAA also developed software to make strike reporting easier. Now, anyone

who needs to report a wildlife strike can do so via the web or their mobile devices.

Also, the FAA made strike reporting easier by creating a generic web site. When

airline and airport employees report a wildlife strike, the information is automatically

sent to the FAA’s wildlife strike database.

Wildlife Hazard Mitigation Research

For the last 15 years, the FAA and the USDA have conducted a research program

to make airports safer by reducing the risks of aircraft-wildlife collisions. The

research efforts designed to improve wildlife management techniques and practices

on and near airports include:
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

17

 Methods for making airport habitats less attractive to species that are the

most dangerous in terms of aircraft collisions. This is accomplished by

studying which species use the airport property, how they behave in that

environment, and why they are attracted

 Techniques for controlling species by restricting access to attractive features

like storm water ponds

 Technologies for harassing and deterring hazardous species

 Evaluation of avian radar systems for detecting and tracking birds on or near

airports

 Aircraft-mounted alternating, pulse lights to enhance aircraft detection and

deter wildlife strikes

Bird Radar

In 2001, the FAA began working with the

U.S. Air Force to develop a radar system

for detecting and tracking birds on or near

airports. In 2006, the FAA refocused the

radar research to evaluate the capability of

commercially available, low-cost, portable

radars to reliably detect and track birds on

or near airports.

Bird radars were evaluated at SeattleTacoma International Airport and the

Whidbey Island Naval Air Station in 2007,

followed by deployments at Chicago’s

O’Hare International Airport and New

York’s John F. Kennedy International

Airport in 2009 and 2010, respectively. As

a result of the radar evaluation, the FAA

published a performance specification,

Advisory Circular 150/5220-25, Airport

Avian Radar Systems, that airports can use for the competitive procurement of bird

radar systems. The guidelines provide the operational considerations of acquiring

and using the technology to enhance wildlife hazard mitigation practices on civil

airports. Under some circumstances, procurement of bird radar systems may be

eligible for funding under the FAA’s Airport Improvement Program (AIP).

Wildlife Hazard Assessments and Wildlife Hazard Management Plans

The FAA is encouraging all certificated airports to conduct wildlife hazard

assessments until finalization of a proposal to require all Part 139 certificated

airports to complete a WHA. In response to National Transportation Safety Board

(NTSB) Recommendation A-10-75, the FAA has proposed amending 14 CFR §

Cooperative research between the

USDA/APHIS/W ildlif e Services

National Wildlife Research Center and

North Carolina State University

investigated resident Canada goose

behavior, movement patterns, and

habitat preference throughout the

greater Greensboro, NC, area. Photo

courtesy J. Weller.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

18

139.337 to require all Part 139 certificated airports to conduct a WHA, require

periodic completion of a WHA, provide an option for continuous wildlife monitoring

as an alternative to periodic WHAs, and clarify the requirements for personnel

conducting a WHA. These WHAs will allow an airport to:

 Identify trends in wildlife use of the airport (habitat preferences, seasonal

composition and abundance of wildlife species, geography of strikes,

seasonality of strikes, time and phase of flight of strikes, etc.)

 Prevent future strikes through operational changes, habitat (attractant)

modifications, customized harassment, and/ or species removal

 Evaluate the overall risk level of wildlife strikes and the efficacy of the

airport’s wildlife hazard mitigation program (e.g., determine redundancy of

species specific hazards, monitor reduction of onsite damaging strikes,

monitor wildlife program communication and response efficiency, and

improve overall program through annual review)

A WHA provides fundamental wildlife and habitat information for an effective,

airport-specific WHMP. The WHMP outlines a plan of action to minimize the risk to

aviation safety, airport structures or equipment, or human health posed by

populations of hazardous wildlife on and around an airport. The FAA supports

completion of wildlife hazard assessments and wildlife hazard management plans

by providing financial assistance from the AIP.

Mitigating Strikes at GA Airports

The FAA is also encouraging federally-obligated GA airports to conduct Wildlife

Hazard Assessments. . For example, one of the ways the FAA has done that is by

sponsoring a research study under the Airport Cooperative Research Program

(ACRP). The final report, Guidebook for Addressing Aircraft/Wildlife Hazards at

General Aviation Airports has been published. It provides practical guidance on

how to address wildlife strikes at airports with a specific emphasis on the general

aviation community.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

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LITERATURE CITED

Adams, K., Hamilton, J., and Ross, M., 2009. Quality Deer Management

Association’s Whitetail Report 2009. 68 pages. (http://www.QDMA.com).

Begier, M. J., and R. A. Dolbeer. 2010. Protecting the flying public and minimizing

economic losses within the aviation industry: technical, operational, and research

assistance provided by USDA-APHIS-Wildlife Services to reduce wildlife hazards

to aviation, Fiscal year 2009. Special report, U.S. Department of Agriculture,

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Wildlife Services. Washington, DC,

USA. 13 pages.

Burger, J. 1983. Jet aircraft noise and bird strikes: why more birds are being hit.

Environmental Pollution (Series A) 30:143–152.

Cleary, E. C., and A. Dickey. 2010. Guidebook for addressing aircraft/wildlife

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Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

26

TABLES

Table 1. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by wildlife group, USA,

1990–2009 (see Figures 1 and 2).

Year Birds Bats

Terrestrial

mammals1 Reptiles1

Total

strikes

Strikes

with

damage

1990 1,737 4 52 0 1,793 372

1991 2,252 3 54 0 2,309 398

1992 2,351 2 73 1 2,427 366

1993 2,391 6 67 0 2,464 399

1994 2,458 2 82 1 2,543 462

1995 2,640 5 84 8 2,737 499

1996 2,838 1 91 3 2,933 504

1997 3,350 1 95 14 3,460 581

1998 3,654 3 111 7 3,775 590

1999 5,001 7 96 1 5,105 704

2000 5,863 16 124 3 6,006 765

2001 5,636 8 139 8 5,791 644

2002 6,045 19 119 15 6,198 671

2003 5,850 20 127 5 6,002 631

2004 6,401 27 127 6 6,561 623

2005 7,076 27 132 7 7,242 607

2006 7,036 49 143 10 7,238 598

2007 7,516 53 175 7 7,751 568

2008 7,368 46 183 5 7,602 527

2009 9,163 68 233 10 9,474 601

Total 96,626 367 2,307 111 99,411 11,110

1

For terrestrial mammals and reptiles, species with body masses <1 kilogram (2.2

lbs) are excluded from database (Dolbeer et al. 2005).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

27

Table 2. Number and rate of reported wildlife strikes and strikes with damage for

commercial air carrier aircraft, USA, 1990–2009 (see Figure 3).

No. of reported strikes Strikes/100,000 movements

Year

All

strikes

Strikes

with

damage

Aircraft

movements

(x 1 million)1

All

strikes

Strikes

with

damage

1990 1,336 213 23.27 5.74 0.92

1991 1,775 250 24.79 7.16 1.01

1992 1,806 210 25.18 7.17 0.83

1993 1,779 229 25.57 6.96 0.90

1994 1,903 281 26.59 7.16 1.06

1995 2,017 321 27.05 7.46 1.19

1996 2,086 312 27.58 7.56 1.13

1997 2,456 363 27.77 8.84 1.31

1998 2,515 363 28.01 8.98 1.30

1999 3,849 474 28.76 13.38 1.65

2000 4,472 510 29.54 15.14 1.73

2001 4,155 442 29.16 14.25 1.52

2002 4,405 463 27.62 15.95 1.68

2003 4,280 416 27.91 15.34 1.49

2004 4,686 402 28.89 16.22 1.39

2005 5,164 417 29.25 17.65 1.43

2006 4,908 404 28.31 17.34 1.43

2007 5,002 353 28.47 17.57 1.24

2008 4,574 332 27.95 16.36 1.19

2009 6,089 386 25.48 23.90 1.51

Total 69,257 7,141 547.15 12.66 1.31

1 Departures and arrivals by air carrier, commuter, and air taxi service (FAA 2010).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

28

Table 3. Number and rate of reported wildlife strikes and strikes with damage for

general aviation aircraft, USA, 1990–2009 (see Figure 3).

No. of reported strikes Strikes/100,000 movements

Year

All

strikes

Strikes

with

damage

Aircraft

movements

(x 1 million)1

All

strikes

Strikes

with

damage

1990 457 159 77.83 0.59 0.20

1991 534 148 83.84 0.64 0.18

1992 621 156 82.63 0.75 0.19

1993 685 170 80.70 0.85 0.21

1994 640 181 79.50 0.81 0.23

1995 720 178 77.52 0.93 0.23

1996 847 192 79.30 1.07 0.24

1997 1,004 218 80.27 1.25 0.27

1998 1,260 227 84.60 1.49 0.27

1999 1,256 230 85.70 1.47 0.27

2000 1,534 255 87.47 1.75 0.29

2001 1,636 202 86.31 1.90 0.23

2002 1,793 208 86.17 2.08 0.24

2003 1,722 215 83.84 2.05 0.26

2004 1,875 221 83.08 2.26 0.27

2005 2,078 190 81.56 2.55 0.23

2006 2,330 194 80.57 2.89 0.24

2007 2,749 215 80.75 3.40 0.27

2008 3,028 195 78.23 3.87 0.25

2009 3,385 215 74.56 4.54 0.29

Total 30,154 3,969 1,634.42 1.84 0.24

1

Itinerant and local departures and arrivals by general aviation aircraft (FAA 2010).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

29

Table 4. Source of information for reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft, USA,

1990–2009.

Source

20-year

total

% of total

known

FAA Form 5200-71(Paper) 39,815 40

FAA Form 5200-7E2(Electronic) 27,727 28

Airline report 13,522 14

Multiple3 8,706 9

Airport report 4,608 5

Other41,405 1

Preliminary Aircraft Incident Report 889 1

Engine manufacturer 858 1

Aircraft Incident Report 826 1

Daily Report (FAA) 711 1

Aviation Safety Reporting System 196 0

National Transportation Safety Board 80 0

Aircraft Incident Preliminary Notice 68 0

Total 99,411 100

1 Bird/Other Wildlife Strike Report.

2 Electronic filing of reports (http://wildlife.faa.gov) began in April 2001. In 2001, 0.4

percent of reports were filed electronically compared to 20, 28, 32, 37, 46, 62, 67,

and 71 percent in 2002 through 2009, respectively. The paper version of FAA Form

5200-7 (mailed to FAA headquarters) declined from 57 percent of all reports in 2001

to 9 percent in 2009.

3 More than one type of report was filed for the same strike.

4 Various sources, such as news media and Commercial Incident Reports.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

30

Table 5. Person filing report of wildlife strike to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

Person filing report

20-year

total

% of total

known

Airline Operations 22,801 28

Pilot 19,598 24

Carcass Found116,696 21

Airport Operations 10,317 13

Tower 9,839 12

Other 2,085 3

Total known 81,336 100

Unknown 18,075

Total 99,411

1 Airport personnel found wildlife remains within 200 feet of a runway centerline that

appeared to have been struck by aircraft and no strike was reported by pilot, tower, or

airline.

Table 6. Number of reported wildlife strikes to civil aircraft by type of operator, USA,

1990–2009.

Type of operator

20-year

total

% of total

known

Commercial 69,257 85

Business 9,141 11

Private 2,156 3

Government/ Police1501 1

Total known 81,055 100

Unknown 18,356

Total 99,411

1 U.S. Coast Guard aircraft were involved in 152 of these strikes.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

31

Table 7. Number of reported bird, bat, terrestrial mammal, and reptile strikes to civil aircraft by

USA state, including the District of Columbia (DC), Puerto Rico (PR), USA-possessed Pacific

Islands (PI), and the U.S. Virgin Islands (VI), 1990–2009.

Reported strikes (20-year total) Reported strikes (20-year total)

State Birds Bats

T. mammalsReptiles Total State Birds BatsT. mammalsReptiles Total

AK 686 1 35 0 722 NC 1,600 2 35 0 1,637

AL 783 2 11 0 796 ND 324 0 16 0 340

AR 373 1 20 1 395 NE 1,069 10 17 0 1,096

AZ 1,569 36 74 0 1,679 NH 500 7 7 0 514

CA 8,347 6 137 0 8,490 NJ 2,694 4 114 11 2,823

CO 3,347 14 156 0 3,517 NM 254 2 32 0 288

CT 982 1 22 0 1,005 NV 484 0 11 0 495

DC 2,053 4 47 2 2,105 NY 5,237 9 166 26 5,438

DE 81 0 1 0 82 OH 3,202 11 100 0 3,313

FL 6,230 13 83 49 6,375 OK 913 1 37 5 956

GA 1,475 2 35 0 1,512 OR 1,624 2 12 0 1,638

HI 2,203 0 8 0 2,211 PA 3,066 6 97 0 3,169

IA 732 2 25 0 759 PI 162 0 0 0 162

ID 250 0 10 0 260 PR 173 2 0 6 181

IL 4,380 6 116 1 4,503 RI 392 1 14 0 407

IN 1,302 2 30 0 1,334 SC 449 0 26 0 475

KS 330 1 12 0 343 SD 236 0 14 1 251

KY 2,478 5 21 0 2,504 TN 2,951 2 22 0 2,975

LA 1,708 11 25 2 1,746 TX 7,063 110 135 1 7,309

MA 1,277 1 25 0 1,303 UT 1,252 4 20 0 1,276

MD 1,095 6 69 1 1,171 VA 1,190 4 63 2 1,259

ME 288 0 16 0 304 VI 99 0 0 0 99

MI 2,378 13 104 1 2,496 VT 122 0 3 0 125

MN 1,001 11 29 0 1,041 WA 1,489 3 25 0 1,517

MO 2,296 9 44 0 2,349 WI 899 5 64 0 968

MS 320 0 11 0 331 WV 210 0 56 0 266

MT 148 0 14 0 162 WY 100 0 8 0 108

Total known1

85,886 332 2,274 109 88,581

Foreign2

2,093 10 9 0 2,112

Unknown 8,667 25 24 2 8,718

Total 96,626 367 2,307 111 99,411

1 Strikes were reported at 1,585 airports in the USA. The numbers include 1,358 bird strikes and 4

bat strikes that occurred enroute where the state where the strike occurred was reported.

2Strikes to USA air carriers were reported at 237 foreign airports.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

32

Table 8. Reported time of occurrence of wildlife strikes with civil aircraft, USA,

1990–20091.

Birds Terrestrial mammals

Time of day

20-year

total

% of total

known

20-year

total

% of total

known

Dawn 2,564 4 45 3

Day 39,888 62 361 25

Dusk 3,166 5 128 9

Night 18,385 29 897 63

Total known 64,003 100 1,431 100

Unknown 32,623 876

Total 96,626 2,307

1

In addition, 367 strikes with bats were reported from 1990–2009: time not

reported (269), night (76), dusk (9), day (11), and dawn (2). Also, 111 strikes

with reptiles were reported from 1990–2009: time not reported (93), day (11),

night (4), dusk (2), and dawn (1).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

33

Table 9. Reported phase of flight at time of occurrence of wildlife strikes with civil

aircraft, USA, 1990–20091.

Birds Terrestrial mammals

Phase

of

flight

20-year

total

% of total

known

20-year

total

% of total

known

Parked 42 <1 1 <1

Taxi 258 <1 39 2

Take-off Run 13,313 19 506 32

Climb 12,579 18 35 2

En Route 1,674 2 0 0

Descent 2,615 4 0 0

Approach 27,605 40 107 7

Landing Roll 11,690 17 882 56

Total known 69,776 100 1,570 100

Unknown 26,850 737

Total 96,626 2,307

1

In addition, 367 strikes with bats were reported from 1990-2009: phase of flight not

reported (275), approach (59), landing roll (11), climb (10), descent (5), take-off run

(4), and en route (3). Also, 111 strikes with reptiles were reported: phase of flight

not reported (85), take-off run (11), taxi (5), approach (5; pilot had a missed

approach because reptile was on the runway), and landing roll (5).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

34

Table 10. Number of reported bird strikes to commercial civil aircraft by height (feet)

above ground level (AGL), USA, 1990–2009. See Figure 5 for graphic analysis of strike

data from 500 to 18,500 feet AGL1.

All reported strikes Strikes with damage

Height

of strike

(feet AGL)

20-year

total

% of

total

known

% cumulative

total

20-year

total

% of

total

known

% cumulative

total

0 21,070 41 41 1,455 30 30

1-500 15,603 31 72 1,355 28 58

501-1500 5,351 11 82 682 14 72

1501-2500 2,712 5 88 418 9 81

2501-3500 2,035 4 92 266 6 86

3501-4500 1,204 2 94 152 3 90

4501-5500 881 2 96 120 2 92

5501-6500 630 1 97 96 2 94

6501-7500 402 1 98 61 1 95

7501-8500 324 1 99 60 1 97

8501-9500 176 <1 99 26 1 97

9501-10,500 220 <1 99 40 1 98

>10,500 333 <1 100 101 2 100

Total known 50,941 100 4,832 100

Unknown height 17,526 2,120

Total 68,467 6,952

1 A more detailed analysis of bird strikes by height AGL is provided by Dolbeer (2006b).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

35

Table 11. Number of reported bird strikes to general aviation aircraft by height (feet)

above ground level (AGL), USA, 1990–2009. See Figure 5 for graphic analysis of strike

data from 500 to 18,500 feet AGL1.

All reported strikes Strikes with damage

Height

of strike

(feet AGL)

20-year

total

% of

total

known

% cumulative

total

20-year

total

% of

total

known

% cumulative

total

0 4,280 40 40 549 19 19

1-500 3,918 37 76 967 34 54

501-1500 1,313 12 89 677 24 77

1501-2500 592 6 94 308 11 88

2501-3500 277 3 97 153 5 94

3501-4500 133 1 98 69 2 96

4501-5500 75 1 99 37 1 97

5501-6500 46 <1 99 22 1 98

6501-7500 37 <1 99 16 1 99

7501-8500 14 <1 100 4 <1 99

8501-9500 12 <1 100 7 <1 99

9501-10,500 11 <1 100 7 <1 99

>10,500 24 <1 100 16 <1 100

Total known 10,732 100 2,832 100

Unknown height 17,427 401

Total 28,159 3,233
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

36

Table 12. Civil aircraft components reported as being struck and damaged by wildlife, USA,

1990–2009.

Birds (20-year total) Terrestrial mammals (20-year total)

Aircraft

component

Number

struck

% of

total

Number

damaged

% of

total

Number

struck

% of

total

Number

damaged

% of

total

Windshield 14,843 17 711 6 7 <1 14 1

Engine(s)112,493 14 3,757 31 155 8 159 10

Nose 12,601 14 727 6 87 4 86 5

Wing/rotor 11,659 13 2,754 23 230 11 242 15

Fuselage 11,077 13 472 4 114 6 125 8

Radome 10,987 12 1,179 10 13 1 14 1

Other 6,719 8 913 8 287 14 256 16

Landing gear 3,960 4 385 3 815 40 379 23

Propeller 2,217 3 214 2 267 13 259 16

Tail 1,179 1 484 4 53 3 68 4

Light 635 1 491 4 33 2 40 2

Total288,370 100 12,087 100 2,061 100 1,642 100

1 For birds, 12,493 engines were reported as struck in 11,907 strike events involving engines

(11,343 events with one engine struck, 547 with two engines struck, 12 with three engines struck,

and 5 with four engines struck). A total of 3,757 engines were damaged in 3,638 bird strike events

with engine damage (3,522 events with one engine damaged, 114 with two engines damaged, 1

with three engines damaged, and 1 with 4 engines damaged). For terrestrial mammals, 155

engines were reported as struck in 145 strike events (135 events with one engine struck and 10

with two engines struck). A total of 159 engines were damaged in 141 terrestrial mammal strike

events with engine damage (123 events with one engine damaged and 18 with two engines

damaged). Some engines were damaged without being struck when the landing gear collapsed.

2

In addition, bat strikes had 123 and 7 components reported as struck and damaged, respectively:

radome/nose (37, 0), windshield (26, 0), engine (12, 3), propeller (1, 0), wing/rotor (18, 3), fuselage

(10, 0), tail (2, 0), other (11, 0), landing gear (5, 0), light (1, 1). For reptile strikes, there were 21

and 5 components reported struck and damaged, respectively: windshield (1, 1), wing/rotor (1, 1),

fuselage (1, 1), landing gear (16, 0); tail (1, 1), other (1, 1).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

37

Table 13. Number of civil aircraft with reported damage resulting from wildlife strikes, USA,

1990–2009. See Tables 1, 2, and 3 and Figure 5 for trends in damaging strikes from 1990–

2009.

Reported strikes

Birds Terrestrial mammals Total1

Damage

category2

20-year

total

% of total

known

20-year

total

% of total

known

20-year

total

% of total

known

None 64,670 86 582 39 65,375 85

Damage 10,185 14 917 61 11,110 15

Minor 5,407 7 484 32 5,894 8

Uncertain 2,178 3 61 4 2,240 3

Substantial 2,569 3 348 23 2,921 4

Destroyed 31 <1 24 2 55 0

Total known 74,855 100 1,499 100 76,485 100

Unknown 21,771 808 22,926

Total 96,626 2,307 99,411

1

Included in totals are 367 and 111 strikes involving bats and reptiles, respectively. For bats,

107 reports indicated no damage, 253 failed to report if damage occurred, 3 reported minor

damage, 1 reported uncertain level of damage, and 3 reported substantial damage. For

reptiles, 16 reports indicated no damage, 94 failed to report if damage occurred, and 1 reported

substantial damage.

2 The damage codes and descriptions follow the International Civil Aviation Organization Bird

Strike Information System (1989): Minor = the aircraft can be rendered airworthy by simple

repairs or replacements and an extensive inspection is not necessary; Uncertain = the aircraft

was damaged, but details as to the extent of the damage are lacking; Substantial = the aircraft

incurs damage or structural failure that adversely affects the structure strength, performance, or

flight characteristics of the aircraft and that would normally require major repair or replacement

of the affected component (specifically excluded are bent fairings or cowlings; small dents or

puncture holes in the skin; damage to wing tips, antenna, tires, or brakes; and engine blade

damage not requiring blade replacement); Destroyed = the damage sustained makes it

inadvisable to restore the aircraft to an airworthy condition.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

38

Table 14. Reported effect-on-flight (EOF) of wildlife strikes to civil aircraft, USA,

1990–2009.

Reported strikes

Birds Terrestrial mammals Total1

Effect-on-flight2

20-year

total

% of

total

known

20-year

total

% of

total

known

20-year

total

% of

total

known

None 51,278 88 538 47 51,926 87

Negative effect 6,879 12 599 53 7,489 13

Precautionary landing 3,555 6 90 8 3,649 6

Aborted take-off 1,602 3 194 17 1,796 3

Engine shutdown 335 1 27 2 362 1

Other 1,387 2 288 25 1,682 3

Total known 58,157 100 1,137 100 59,415 100

Unknown 38,469 1,170 39,996

Total 96,626 2,307 99,411

1

Included in totals are 367 and 111 strikes involving bats and reptiles, respectively. For

bats, 90 reports indicated no effect-on-flight, 274 failed to report if an effect-on-flight

occurred, and 3 reported a precautionary landing. For reptiles, 20 reports indicated no

effect-on-flight, 83 failed to report if an effect-on-flight occurred, 1 reported a precautionary

landing, and 7 reported “other”.

2 Effect-on-flight: None = flight continued as scheduled, although delays and other cost

caused by inspections or repairs may have been incurred after landing; Aborted take-off =

pilot aborted the take-off; Precautionary landing = pilot landed at other-than-destination

airport after strike; Engine shut down = pilot shut down the engine or the engine stopped

running because of strike; Other = miscellaneous effects, such as reduced speed because

of shattered windshield, emergency landing at other-than-destination airport, flight delays,

or crash landing; Unknown = report did not give sufficient information to determine an

effect-on-flight (Dolbeer et al. 2000).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

39

Table 15. Total reported strikes, strikes causing damage, strikes having a negative

effect-on-flight (EOF), strikes involving >1 animal, aircraft downtime, and costs by

identified wildlife species for civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009 (page 1 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Birds

Loons 22 14 9 0 2,885 1,766,200

Loons 3 3 2 557 251,200

Common loon 18 10 6 2,280 1,513,000

Red-throated loon 1 1 1 48 2,000

Grebes 48 10 7 8 168 2,109,470

Grebes 8 1 1

Eared grebe 6 1 1 10 100,000

Western grebe 15 6 5 6 86 1,900,000

Pied-billed grebe 10 1 0

Horned grebe 6 2 1 72 109,470

Red-necked grebe 2

Clark’s grebe 1

Albatrosses/shearwaters 54 7 6 149 62,500

Laysan albatross 31 6 5 149 62,500

Black-footed albatross 5 1

Bonin petrel 3

Wedge-tailed shearwater 9 1

Townsend’s shearwater 5

Fork-tailed storm-petrel 1

Tropicbirds 12 8 7 172 75,300

Tropicbirds 6 5 4 124 40,200

White-tailed tropicbird 3 2 2 48 29,500

Red-tailed tropicbird 3 1 1 5,600

Pelicans 61 30 25 8 479 2,516,523

Pelicans 4 2 80

Australian pelican 1 1 1

Brown pelican 48 22 18 5 327 266,523

American white pelican 8 5 6 3 72 2,250,000

Red- footed booby 1

Cormorants 83 30 19 11 282 2,984,722

Cormorants 8 2 2 180,000

Great cormorant 2 1 2

D.-crested cormorant 72 27 17 9 282 2,804,722

Pelagic cormorant 1

Anhinga 18 7 7 3 117 7,800
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

40

Table 15. Continued (page 2 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Frigatebirds 12 5 2 21 18,400

Frigatebirds 3 2 1 18 13,500

Great frigatebird 7 2 1 3 4,900

Magnificent frigatebird 2 1 0

Herons/bitterns 397 75 57 15 3,491 5,175,396

Herons 49 13 9 4 99 3,200

Gray heron 1 1 1

Great blue heron 235 51 41 6 2,679 4,829,810

Blk-crowned night-heron 37 4 2 2 49 281,200

Little blue heron 4

Green heron 7

Yell.-crowned night heron 12 3 2 1 18 17,000

Tricolored heron 1

American bittern 6 3 2 646 44,186

Yellow bittern 45 2

Egrets 536 60 80 133 3,805 5,329,697

Egrets 279 31 42 79 3,467 3,465,140

Cattle egret 189 19 30 46 178 12,775

Great egret 44 8 7 7 134 1,851,782

Snowy egret 24 2 1 1 26

Storks 11 4 2 2 24 20,000

White stork 1 1

Wood stork 10 3 2 2 24 20,000

Ibises/spoonbills 21 5 5 5 1

Ibises 5 1 1

Glossy ibis 1 1

White ibis 6 1 1 1

White-faced ibis 8 4 2 2

Roseate spoonbill 1 1 1

Waterfowl 3,391 1,503 744 1,238 121,553 144,074,372

Ducks, geese, swans 134 64 31 54 763 847,075

Ducks 689 238 114 227 5,270 4,060,096

American wigeon 30 15 6 9 3,951 1,083,089

Northern pintail 60 38 21 33 1,509 1,869,439

Green-winged teal 25 10 6 9 732 688,142

Blue-winged teal 15 8 3 8 145 608,440

Eurasian wigeon 1 1

Mallard 521 129 63 117 9,253 5,399,639
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

41

Table 15. Continued (page 3 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Common eider 3 2 1 1

Ring-necked duck 10 5 3 4 1,080 78,468

Greater scaup 4 1 1 1

Wood duck 25 9 4 6 294 85,704

Muscovy duck 1 1 120 443,332

Common goldeneye 3 2 1 2,000

Red-breasted merganser 4 1 1 2

Hooded merganser 5 2 1 30 27,023

Common merganser 2 2 2 1 120 2,500

Northern shoveler 28 14 3 12 1,668 1,340,020

Gadwall 22 6 3 5 414 1,521,678

Canvasback 11 4 1 4 335 2,154,077

American black duck 31 3 1 11 36 1,500

Mottled duck 14 4 3 3 24

Lesser scaup 20 12 7 8 1,263 165,000

Ruddy duck 17 5 1 24 8,446

Redhead 3 1 1

Bufflehead 5 1 1 1 40 4,874

Long-tailed duck 3 2 2 1 3 1,100

Philippine duck 1 1 1 1 96 9,456,000

Blk-bellied whistling-duck 1

Cinnamon teal 3 8

White-winged scoter 1 1 1 1 1,400 430,000

Hawaiian duck 2

Geese 320 195 83 112 24,424 2,000,117

Snow goose 90 71 35 49 7,589 20,245,986

Canada goose 1,238 630 336 535 60,152 88,904,019

Brant 20 9 3 7 108 51,271

Gr white-fronted goose 14 10 3 9 292 1,500,547

Emperor goose 1

Swans 2 1

Mute swan 5 1

Tundra swan 5 4 2 3 336 144,790

Trumpeter swan 2 2 2 1 72 950,000

Raptors 5,724 925 632 219 87,547 55,982,962

Hawks, eagles, vultures 29 16 7 1 2,559 17,550

Vultures 268 154 76 27 22,619 9,312,759

Black vulture 53 32 22 6 5,261 1,458,658
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

42

Table 15. Continued (page 4 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Turkey vulture 363 185 126 18 23,995 4,532,437

Osprey 168 37 25 3 2,268 292,923

White-tailed kite 14 4 2 46 5,000,000

Black kite 2 1 1

Mississippi kite 1

Swallow-tailed kite 1

Eagles 7 3 2 1

Bald eagle 125 53 36 9 6,340 14,402,681

White-breasted sea-eagle 1 1 1

Golden eagle 8 2 4 3,696 801,000

Hawks 1,041 205 145 28 9,871 4,009,818

Northern goshawk 1

Red-tailed hawk 1,122 182 127 26 9,078 6,709,526

Rough-legged hawk 40 2 2 167

Red-shouldered hawk 15 1 2 41 900

Swainson’s hawk 53 5 4 1 16 350,000

Sharp-shinned hawk 11

Cooper's hawk 39 2 2 3

Ferruginous hawk 9 1 1 24 3,200,000

Broad-winged hawk 9 1 1

Harris' hawk 2

White-tailed hawk 1

Eurasian buzzard 1 24

Northern harrier 70 2 1 2 200,000

Lappet-faced vulture 1 1 1 240 4,000,000

Falcons 41 3 4 1 81 30,100

Peregrine falcon 149 10 3 6 78 235,500

Gyrfalcon 1

Merlin 40 2 1 3 130

Crested caracara 6 2 1 2

Prairie falcon 9

American kestrel 2,019 19 34 88 1,302 1,428,813

Eurasian kestrel 4 1 1

Gallinaceous birds 160 44 35 28 1,830 620,287

Grouse 7 2 3 2

Greater sage-grouse 6 4 4 1 337 256,077

Sharp-tailed grouse 1 1 1 24 500

Ptarmigans 6 4 1 2 57 57,500
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

43

Table 15. Continued (page 5 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Black francolin 3

Quails 10 2 2

Northern bobwhite 6 2 3 1 73 800

Scaled quail 3

Pheasants 1 1

Ring-necked pheasant 60 14 10 5 863 92,000

Partridges 1

Red-legged partridge 1

Gray partridge 5 2 1 3 24 120

Chukar 2 1 1

Gray francolin 2

Guineafowl 1 1 1

Wild turkey 45 13 12 9 450 213,290

Cranes 101 39 29 33 2,413 434,560

Cranes 12 3 5 2 31 250,000

Sandhill crane 88 35 24 31 2,334 134,260

Whooping crane 1 1 48 50,300

Rails/gallinules 98 20 9 6 1,993 1,001,426

Rails 3 1 1 1

Sora 10 1 20

Common moorhen 3 1 1 24 990

American coot 72 17 5 5 1,877 974,986

Purple gallinule 3 1 1 72 25,450

Virginia rail 3

Clapper rail 4

Shorebirds 3,158 84 110 514 1,477 3,420,818

Shorebirds 19 9

American oystercatcher 18 2

Plovers, lapwings 1 1

Plovers 42 3 4 8 24

European golden-plover 3

American golden-plover 62 3 4 21 16 2,000

Black-bellied plover 49 4 3 8 20 164,254

Snowy plover 1 1

Killdeer 1,823 35 42 185 340 2,636,463

Pacific golden-plover 519 3 9 81 35 2,200

Semipalmated plover 32 13

Wilson's plover 1
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

44

Table 15. Continued (page 6 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Northern lapwing 1 1 1 1 25

Southern lapwing 1 1 1 8,000

Sandpipers 180 11 22 69 169 106,560

Upland sandpiper 106 4 6 12 12 1,000

Spotted sandpiper 9 1 3

Willet 5 2

Wilson's snipe 31 3 2 4 19 12,615

American woodcock 29 1 2 3

Dunlin 17 3 2 5 504 205,300

Baird's sandpiper 11 1

Western sandpiper 43 2 3 28 93 106,566

Pectoral sandpiper 7 1 1 2 300

Sanderling 16 1 2 8

Buff-breasted sandpiper 13 4

Ruddy turnstone 5 1

Least sandpiper 34 1 3 14 3

Semipalmated sandpiper 28 12

Lesser yellowlegs 3 1

Short-billed dowitcher 5 1 1

Hudsonian godwit 1 1 1 1 96 23,495

Solitary sandpiper 2 1

Greater yellowlegs 2 1 48 8,000

Long-billed dowitcher 6 2 1

Red knot 2

White-rumped sandpiper 4

Black turnstone 1

Marbled godwit 1 1 1 1 48 144,065

Curlews 1 1

Eurasian curlew 1

Whimbrel 9 1 1 1 24

Long-billed curlew 3

Red-necked phalarope 2

Wilson's phalarope 1 1

American avocet 4 1 3

Black-necked stilt 4 3

Gulls/jaegers 7,894 1,204 980 1,862 53,437 36,241,330

Parasitic jaeger 1
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

45

Table 15. Continued (page 7 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Gulls 5,576 968 766 1,477 39,424 19,168,196

Herring gull 776 84 79 92 1,940 1,710,951

Mew gull 46 6 4 8 28 86,717

Ring-billed gull 894 85 75 178 5,536 2,991,930

Glaucous-winged gull 59 12 8 10 290 346,545

Great black-backed gull 72 7 5 4 27 250,000

Franklin's gull 56 3 6 22 19 139,000

Laughing gull 244 16 18 41 731 534,136

Bonaparte's gull 27 2 3 7 65,000

Lesser black-backed gull 3 1 1 1

Western gull 67 9 5 8 126 680,857

California gull 60 8 7 8 4,860 361,948

Heermann's gull 1 1

Black-headed gull 2

Thayer's gull 3

Yellow-legged gull 3 3 3 3 456 9,906,050

Glaucous gull 4 2

Terns/kittiwakes 117 4 3 26 4

Terns 38 2 12

Caspian tern 18 1

Common tern 12 2

Gull-billed tern 3

Fairy tern 2

White tern 3 1 1

Arctic tern 3 1 2

Roseate tern 1

Forster's tern 8 1 2 4

Least tern 7 2

Black noddy 3 2

Brown noddy 6 1 1

Royal tern 2

Sooty tern 1

Black-legged kittiwake 2

Red-legged kittiwake 1

Black skimmer 7 1 1

Pigeons/doves 6,410 363 431 1,574 22,661 11,282,378

Pigeons, doves 14 1 1 10 24 400

Pigeons 16 2 2 6 9 300
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

46

Table 15. Continued (page 8 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Common wood-pigeon 3

Band-tailed pigeon 4 1 2 16

Doves 922 45 77 248 1,175 295,610

Rock pigeon 1,782 199 180 622 14,060 5,208,449

Mourning dove 3,408 109 162 666 7,169 5,503,214

Spotted dove 95 3 6 5 133 274,405

Zebra dove 121 2 3 15 3

Inca dove 14

Island turtle dove 4

White-winged dove 20 1 72

Common ground-dove 7

Parrots 14 1

Parrots 6 1

Budgerigar 7

Nanday parakeet 1

Cuckoos/roadrunners 14 1 3

Cuckoos 2 1

Yellow-billed cuckoo 10 1 2

Common cuckoo 1

Greater roadrunner 1

Owls 1,306 90 56 10 1,545 5,596,892

Owls 265 29 15 4 960 296,875

Barn owl 558 26 19 4 248 1,900,310

Snowy owl 66 6 6 84 331,053

Short-eared owl 213 7 7 58 1,268,171

Long-eared owl 8 2 1

Northern saw-whet owl 4

Burrowing owl 76 1 1 1

Barred owl 10 1 1

Northern pygmy-owl 1

Eastern screech-owl 3 2 24 7,558

Western screech-owl 2

Great horned owl 100 16 7 1 170 1,792,925

Nightjars 213 2 14

Nightjars 6 1

Whip-poor-will 2

Common poorwill 7

Lesser nighthawk 6
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

47

Table 15. Continued (page 9 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Chuck-will’s-widow 2

Common nighthawk 190 1 14

Swifts 140 5 3 11 26

Swifts 10 1 2

Chimney swift 104 2 3 9 1

Common swift 1 1

Vaux's swift 14 24

White-throated swift 11 1 1

Hummingbirds 6

Hummingbirds 2

R.-throated hummingbird 1

Anna's hummingbird 2

Blk-chinned hummingbird 1

Belted kingfisher 8

Woodpeckers 60 3 4 2 1 15,000

Woodpeckers 9 1

Northern flicker 38 3

Yellow-bellied sapsucker 8 1 2

Hairy woodpecker 3

Red-naped sapsucker 1 1 15,000

Downy woodpecker 1 1 1

Unidentified passiformes 122 9 3 16 66 91,405

Flycatchers 162 1 4 9 1 9,800

Tyrant flycatchers 12 1 1

Eastern wood-pewee 3

Great crested flycatcher 1

Eastern kingbird 10 1 1 9,800

Scissor-tailed flycatcher 55 2 4

Acadian flycatcher 1

Say’s phoebe 3

Western kingbird 69 1 3

Ash-throated flycatcher 1

Western wood-pewee 1

Sulphur-bellied flycatcher 1

Eastern phoebe 1

Yellow-bellied flycatcher 1 1

Least flycatcher 2

Hammond's flycatcher 1
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

48

Table 15. Continued (page 10 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Larks 1,136 13 21 263 74 510,729

Larks 8 3

Sky lark 28 1

Horned lark 1,100 13 21 259 74 510,729

Swallows 2,424 20 50 561 173 37,714

Swallows 565 6 26 177 32

Purple martin 84 2 1 22 3

Bank swallow 109 2 4 46 5

Barn swallow 1,070 7 13 190 117 23,907

Cliff swallow 376 3 3 61 11 13,742

Tree swallow 192 3 63 5 65

Violet-green swallow 10 1

N. rough-winged swallow 17

Cave swallow 1 1

Starlings/mynas 2,377 96 132 909 2,250 4,345,705

European starling 2,330 95 131 896 2,246 4,345,705

Mynas 4 2

Common myna 43 1 1 11 4

Crows/ravens 509 54 46 74 6,609 1,477,603

Crows 228 25 22 35 906 144,000

American crow 248 21 19 36 5,562 1,265,113

Carrion crow 1

Hooded crow 1 1 1

Northwestern crow 3 1

Common raven 28 7 4 2 141 68,490

Jays/magpies 25 2 2 4 1 555

Blue jay 9

Yellow-billed magpie 8 2

Black-billed magpie 8 2 2 2 1 555

Chickadees 24 1 7

Chickadees 5 1 2

Black-capped chickadee 15 2

Mountain chickadee 2 2

Gray-headed chickadee 1 1

Carolina chickadee 1

Red-vented bulbul 2 1

Wrens 61 1 2 9

Wrens 43 1 1 9
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

49

Table 15. Continued (page 11 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Marsh wren 4 1

House wren 7

Carolina wren 2

Rock wren 1

Cactus wren 3

Winter wren 1

Mimics 84 1 2 3 120

Brown thrasher 9 120

Curve-billed thrasher 1

Northern mockingbird 47 1 2

Tropical mockingbird 1

Gray catbird 26 3

Thrushes 424 33 24 37 1,647 2,369,647

Thrushes 16 2 1 1 7 25,500

Western bluebird 2 3

Swainson's thrush 19 3 1 2 26 2,002,025

Redwing 1

American robin 339 23 18 29 1,582 322,137

Hermit thrush 14 1 1 22 3,800

Eastern bluebird 4

Mountain bluebird 5 2

Gray-cheeked thrush 3

Varied thrush 15 4 2 1 7 15,905

Wood thrush 5 1 1 280

Veery 1 1

Kinglets 9 1

Golden-crowned kinglet 2

Ruby-crowned kinglet 7 1

Wrentits/gnatcatchers 2

Wrentit 1

Blue-gray gnatcatcher 1

American pipit 18 3

Waxwings 25 1 6 4

Bohemian waxwing 1 1

Cedar waxwing 24 1 5 4

Loggerhead shrike 7 1

Vireos 17 1 2

Vireos 3

Yellow-throated vireo 1
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

50

Table 15. Continued (page 12 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Warbling vireo 5 1

Red-eyed vireo 7 1 1

Cassin's vireo 1

Japanese white-eye 1

Warblers 134 3 5 9 31 6,612

Wood warblers 27 1 2 1,700

Canada warbler 3

Yellow-breasted chat 4

Pine warbler 3

Black-and-white warbler 4

Northern parula 3

Ovenbird 8 1 2 1 100

Wilson's warbler 11 1 4 4,569

Common yellowthroat 9 1 1

Yellow-rumped warbler 15 2 43

Blackpoll warbler 6 2 1 200

Mourning warbler 1

American redstart 1 3

Orange-crowned warbler 2

Yellow warbler 5 1 1 17

Northern waterthrush 3

Nashville warbler 7 1 1

Townsend's warbler 2

Palm warbler 5

Magnolia warbler 5 1 2

Blk-throated blue warbler 2

Prothonotary warbler 1

MacGillivray's warbler 2

Yellow-throated warbler 3

Blk-throated gray warbler 1 2

Blk-throated grn warbler 1

Meadowlarks 1,120 12 24 124 237 266,452

Meadowlarks 288 2 7 26 14

Eastern meadowlark 480 3 7 43 7

Western meadowlark 352 7 10 55 216 266,452

Blackbirds/orioles 1,496 93 102 410 1,472 1,047,802

Blackbirds 1,074 74 79 325 588 863,897
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

51

Table 15. Continued (page 13 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Red-winged blackbird 101 3 6 13 7 750

Yellow-headed blackbird 6 1 1 1

Brewer’s blackbird 29 3

Brown-headed cowbird 86 2 3 29 11 5,155

Bobolink 9 1

Rusty blackbird 1

Orioles 5

Baltimore oriole 6 1 1

Orchard oriole 1

Bullock’s oriole 1

Grackles 80 6 2 20 720 133,000

Common grackle 72 5 7 16 123 45,000

Boat-tailed grackle 6 1 1 20

Great-tailed grackle 12 2

Scarlet tanager 3 1

Western tanager 4 1 3

Finches 341 6 24 129 83 10,000

Finches 59 1 5 16 4

Lapland longspur 8 3

Chtnut-collared longspur 1

Dark-eyed junco 24 2 2 3 49 9,000

Rose-breasted grosbeak 2

Island canary 1

Pine siskin 3 2 1

Tropical mockingbird 1

Purple finch 2

Evening grosbeak 1

American goldfinch 26 1 1 3

House finch 38 4

Smith's longspur 1

Dickcissel 3 1

White-winged crossbill 1

Red avadavat 2 1

McCown's longspur 1

Lesser goldfinch 1

Red-crested cardinal 4 1 1

Northern cardinal 3

Snow bunting 133 2 16 92 23 1,000

Indigo bunting 1
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

52

Table 15. Continued (page 14 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Lazuli bunting 1

Lark bunting 25 1 5 2

Sparrows 2,602 47 96 624 611 85,640

Sparrows 2,315 43 94 598 598 50,440

Harris's sparrow 1

Swamp sparrow 7

Savannah sparrow 118 1 11 5 1,000

Fox sparrow 11 1 4,100

White-throated sparrow 21 1 1 2

Golden-crowned sparrow 3 1

Field sparrow 14

Lark sparrow 8

White-crowned sparrow 9

Grasshopper sparrow 17 1 1 1 4 29,700

Java sparrow 2 1

Vesper sparrow 9 1

Chipping sparrow 12 2

Lincoln's sparrow 6

Song sparrow 36 7 3 400

Sage sparrow 5 1

American tree sparrow 7

Black-throated sparrow 1

Towhees 6 1 9 13,151

Rufous-sided towhee 4 1 9 13,151

Green-tailed towhee 1

California towhee 1

Waxbills/mannikins 115 0 2 54 10 3,600

Waxbills, mannikins 2

Common waxbill 3

Mannikins 23 11

Nutmeg mannikin 43 1 22 8 1,600

Black-headed munia 43 1 20 2 2,000

White-throated munia 1 1

House sparrow 77 2 1 11 2
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

53

Table 15. Continued (page 15 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Total known birds 43,410 4,938 3,804 8,992 319,361 289,012,568

Total unknown birds 53,216 5,247 3,075 5,760 105,575 85,889,663

Unknown bird - ? Size 24,200 2,652 1,314 1,521 29,460 30,346,696

Unknown bird-large 2,011 850 399 229 31,524 30,685,730

Unknown bird-medium 7,055 1,072 595 952 34,573 12,544,958

Unknown bird-small 19,950 673 767 3,058 10,018 12,312,279

Total birds396,626 10,185 6,879 14,752 424,936 374,902,231

Flying mammals (bats)

Old world fruit bats 5 1 2 1 72 3,069,400

Vesper bats 3

Red bat 19 1 1 1

Hoary bat 3

East. Small-footed myotis 1

Little brown bat 20 1

Big brown bat 4

Silver-haired bat 3

Free-tailed bats 9 1 270

Brazilian free-tailed bat 33 1

Pocketed free-tailed bat 1

Total known bats 101 2 3 4 73 3,069,670

Total unknown bats 266 5 29 29 106,440

Total bats4367 7 3 33 102 3,176,110

Terrestrial mammals

Marsupials (opossum) 86

Xenarthyras (armadillo) 21 1 4 10 1,000

Lagomorphs 290 7 8 5 20 104,484

Hares 4

Black-tailed jackrabbit 91 2 1 24,384

White-tailed jackrabbit 26 1 1

Rabbits 122 2 3 4 13 2,100

Eastern cottontail 44 3 4 6 78,000

Desert cottontail 3

Rodents 150 2 2 4 3

Pocket gophers 2

Squirrels 2

Prairie dogs 5 1 1

Black-tailed prairie dog 15
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

54

Table 15. Continued (page 16 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Gunnison’s prairie dog 11 3

Woodchuck 89 2 1 3

Woodrats 2

Muskrat 13

N. American porcupine 11

Carnivores 737 50 108 11 14,290 3,164,976

Canids 3 1

Coyote 321 29 72 5 11,680 2,776,040

Domestic dog 32 10 17 1 96 301,000

Foxes 72 4 7 1 10 750

Red fox 63 2 6 340 52,000

Common gray fox 4 1 1 2 186

Raccoon 63 3 3 2 2,160 35,000

White-nosed coati 1

Ringtail 1

Skunks 79 1 1 2

Striped skunk 71 1

River otter 2 1

Badger 2

Mink 1

Domestic cat 19

Small indian mongoose 3

Artiodactyls 1,003 847 467 83 242,919 36,379,187

Deer 30 27 15 696 197,000

White-tailed deer 879 735 401 73 204,986 29,206,056

Mule deer 55 50 27 3 11,232 881,827

Wapiti (elk) 11 11 6 1 11,660 5,581,204

Moose 5 4 4

Caribou 2 2 1

Cattle 9 9 7 3 9,215 357,000

Pronghorn 9 8 5 2 5,130 156,100

Swine (pigs) 1

Collared peccary 2 1 1 1

Perissodactyls 4 4 3 1,008 23,849

Horse 3 3 3 1,008 23,849

Burro 1 1

Total known t. mammals 2,291 911 592 103 258,250 39,673,496

Total unknown t. mammal 16 6 7 1

Total terrestrial mammals52,307 917 599 104 258,250 39,673,496
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

55

Table 15. Continued (page 17 of 17).

20-year totals

Number of reported strikes Reported economic losses1

Wildlife group

or species Total

With

damage

With

neg.

EOF

With

multiple

animals2

Aircraft

down

time (hrs)

Reported

costs ($)

Reptiles

Turtles 88 2 2

Turtles 52 2 1

Florida soft shell turtle 4

Eastern box turtle 5

Common snapping turtle 3

Diamondback terrapin 22 1

Painted turtle 2

American alligator 15 1 2 3

Green iguana 8 4

Total reptiles 111 1 8 2 3

Total known (all species) 45,913 5,852 4,407 9,101 577,687 331,755,734

Total (unknown species) 53,498 5,258 3,082 5,790 105,604 85,996,103

Grand total 99,411 11,110 7,489 14,891 683,291 417,751,837

1 These reported economic losses by species and species groups should be considered as

relative indices of losses and not as actual estimated losses. For commercial aviation, an

estimated 20 percent of strikes were reported in the 1990s and about 39 percent from 2004–

2008. General aviation reporting rates are much lower than for commercial aviation. In

addition, only about 45 percent of reported strikes identified the wildlife species or species

group responsible, 1990–2009. Furthermore, less than 25 percent of reported strikes

indicating damage also provided an estimate of the cost of damage or the downtime (see

Table 19). Finally, even when cost estimates were provided, many reports were filed before

aircraft damage had been fully assessed. See Table 19 for a more detailed projection of

actual economic losses.

2 More than one animal was struck by the aircraft.

3 Of the 96,626 reported bird strikes, 43,410 (45 percent) identified the bird at least to species

group. Of the 43,410 reports with birds identified to species group, 28,469 (66 percent)

identified the bird to exact species (415 species total of which 186 caused damage). Thus, the

bird was identified to species in 29 percent of the reported strikes, 1990–2009. Species

identification has improved from less than 20 percent in the early 1990s to over 40 percent in

2008–2009 (Figure 7).

4 Of the 367 reported bat strikes, 101 (28 percent) identified the bat at least to species group.

Of the 101 reports with bats identified to species group, 84 (84 percent) identified the bat to

exact species (8 species total of which 1 caused damage). Thus, the bat was identified to

species in 23 percent of the reported strikes.

5 Of the 2,307 reported terrestrial mammal strikes, 2,291 (99 percent) identified the mammal at

least to species group. Of the 2,291 reports with mammals identified to species group, 1,970

(86 percent) identified the mammal to exact species (35 species total of which 20 caused

damage). Thus, the mammal was identified to species in 85 percent of the reported strikes.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

56

Table 16. Number of reported strikes, strikes with damage, and strikes involving

multiple animals for the four most commonly struck bird groups and three most

commonly struck terrestrial mammal groups, civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

Reported strikes Strikes with damage

Strikes with

>1 animal

Species group1

20-year

total

% of

total

known

20-year

total

% of

total

known

20-year

total

% of

total

known

Birds

Gulls 7,894 18 1,204 24 1,862 21

Pigeons/ doves 6,410 15 363 7 1,574 18

Raptors 5,724 13 925 19 219 2

Waterfowl 3,391 8 1,503 30 1,238 14

All other known 19,991 46 943 19 4,099 46

Total known birds 43,410 100 4,938 100 8,992 100

Unknown birds 53,216 5,247 5,760

Total birds 96,626 10,185 14,752

Terrestrial mammals

Artiodactyls 1,003 44 847 93 83 81

Carnivores 737 32 50 5 11 11

Lagomorphs 290 13 7 1 5 5

All other known 261 11 7 1 4 4

Total known t. mammals 2,291 100 911 100 103 100

Unknown t. mammals 16 6 1

Total t. mammals 2,307 917 104

1

See Table 15 for listing of species within each species group.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

57

Table 17. Bird and terrestrial mammal species with 25 or more reported strikes with civil

aircraft in USA, 1990–2009 (Table 15), ranked by percent of strikes resulting in damage

to aircraft (page 1 of 3)1.

Percent of strikes:

Rank Wildlife species

Total

reported

strikes

Causing

damage

Causing

negative

EOF

Involving

multiple

animals

Birds

1 Snow goose 90 79 39 54

2 Northern pintail 60 63 35 55

3 Black vulture 53 60 42 11

4 Turkey vulture 363 51 35 5

4 Canada goose 1,238 51 27 43

5 American wigeon 30 50 20 30

5 Northern shoveler 28 50 11 43

6 Brown pelican 48 46 38 10

7 Bald eagle 125 42 29 7

8 Green-winged teal 25 40 24 36

8 Sandhill crane 88 40 27 35

9 Dbl.-crested cormorant 72 38 24 13

10 Wood duck 25 36 16 24

11 Wild turkey 45 29 27 20

12 Common raven 28 25 14 7

12 Mallard 521 25 12 23

13 American coot 72 24 7 7

14 Ring-necked pheasant 60 23 17 8

15 Osprey 168 22 15 2

15 Great blue heron 235 22 17 3

16 Glaucous-winged gull 59 20 14 17

17 Laysan albatross 31 19 16 0

18 Great egret 44 18 16 16

19 Red-tailed hawk 1,122 16 11 2

19 Great horned owl 100 16 7 1

20 Western gull 67 13 8 12

20 California gull 60 13 12 13

20 Mew gull 46 13 9 17

21 Rock pigeon 1,782 11 10 35

21 Blk-crowned night-heron 37 11 5 5

21 Herring gull 776 11 10 12

22 Cattle egret 189 10 16 24

22 Wilson's Snipe 30 10 7 13

22 American black duck 31 10 3 36

22 Great black-backed gull 72 10 7 6

22 Ring-billed gull 894 10 8 20

23 Swainson’s hawk 53 9 8 2

23 Snowy owl 66 9 9 0
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

58

Table 17. continued (page 2 of 3)

Percent of strikes:

Rank Wildlife species

Total

reported

strikes

Causing

damage

Causing

negative

EOF

Involving

multiple

animals

Birds (continued)

23 American crow 248 9 8 15

24 Black-bellied plover 49 8 6 16

24 Northern flicker 38 8 0 0

25 Bonaparte's gull 27 7 11 26

25 Common grackle 72 7 10 22

25 American robin 339 7 5 9

25 Peregrine falcon 149 7 2 4

25 Laughing gull 244 7 7 17

25 Franklin's gull 56 5 11 39

25 Cooper's hawk 39 5 5 0

25 Rough-legged hawk 40 5 5 0

25 American golden-plover 62 5 7 34

25 Western sandpiper 43 5 7 65

25 Barn owl 558 5 3 1

26 European starling 2,330 4 6 39

26 Lark bunting 25 4 0 20

26 Upland sandpiper 106 4 6 11

27 American woodcock 29 3 7 10

27 Short-eared owl 213 3 3 0

27 Mourning dove 3,408 3 5 20

27 Spotted dove 95 3 6 5

27 Red-winged blackbird 101 3 6 13

27 Northern harrier 70 3 1 3

27 Least sandpiper 34 3 9 41

27 House sparrow 77 3 1 14

28 Purple martin 84 2 1 26

28 Common myna 43 2 2 26

28 Brown-headed cowbird 86 2 4 34

28 Northern mockingbird 47 2 4 0

28 Western meadowlark 352 2 3 16

28 Killdeer 1,823 2 2 10

28 Chimney swift 104 2 3 9

28 Bank swallow 109 2 4 42

28 Zebra dove 121 2 3 12

28 Snow bunting 133 2 12 69

29 Burrowing owl 76 1 0 1

29 Horned lark 1,100 1 2 24

29 American kestrel 2,019 1 2 4

29 Cliff swallow 376 1 1 16

29 Savannah sparrow 118 1 0 9

29 Barn swallow 1,070 1 1 18
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

59

Table 17. continued (page 3 of 3)

Percent of strikes:

Rank Wildlife species

Total

reported

strikes

Causing

damage

Causing

negative

EOF

Involving

multiple

animals

Birds (continued)

29 Pacific golden-plover 519 1 2 16

29 Eastern meadowlark 480 1 2 9

29 Common nighthawk 190 1 0 7

30 Yellow bittern 45 0 0 4

30 Merlin 40 0 5 3

30 Semipalmated plover 32 0 0 41

30 Semipalmated sandpiper 28 0 0 43

30 Scissor-tailed flycatcher 55 0 4 7

30 Western kingbird 69 0 1 4

30 Sky lark 28 0 0 4

30 Tree swallow 192 0 2 33

30 Gray catbird 26 0 0 12

30 Brewer’s blackbird 29 0 0 10

30 American goldfinch 26 0 4 4

30 House finch 38 0 0 11

30 Song sparrow 36 0 0 19

30 Nutmeg manikin 43 0 2 51

30 Black-headed munia 43 0 2 47

Terrestrial mammals

1 Mule deer 55 91 49 6

2 White-tailed deer 879 84 46 8

3 Domestic dog 32 31 53 3

4 Coyote 321 9 22 2

5 Eastern cottontail 44 7 9 0

6 Raccoon 63 5 5 3

7 Red fox 63 3 10 0

8 Woodchuck 89 2 1 0

8 Black-tailed jackrabbit 91 2 1 0

9 Opossum 86 0 0 0

9 White-tailed jackrabbit 26 0 0 4

9 Striped skunk 71 0 0 1

1 See Dolbeer and Wright (2009) for a more detailed discussion of the use of wildlife strike

data to rank species as to their hazard level to air operations and for use in airport Safety

Management Systems.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

60

Table 18. Number of civil aircraft lost (destroyed or damaged beyond repair) after

striking wildlife by wildlife species and aircraft mass category, USA, 1990–20091.

Aircraft2 mass category

(Maximum take-off mass)

Wildlife species or

species group

<2,250

kg

2,251-

5,700 kg

5,701-

27,000 kg

>27,000

kg

Total

aircraft

lost

White-tailed deer 12 5 1 18

Unknown bird 10 1 1 12

Canada goose 1 3 1 5

Vultures33 3

Cattle 1 1 2

Hawks 2 2

Amer. white pelican 1 1

Bald eagle 1 1

Brown pelican 1 1

Cormorants 1 1

Coyote 1 1

Domestic dog 1 1

Ducks 1 1

Eastern cottontail 1 1

Eurasian kestrel 1 1

Mourning dove 1 1

Red-tailed hawk 1 1

Ring-billed gull 1 1

Wapiti (elk) 1 1

Total 35 13 5 2 55

1 Thirty-three (60 percent) of the 55 wildlife strikes resulting in a destroyed aircraft occurred

at General Aviation airports, 14 occurred away from an airport, 7 occurred at USA airports

certificated for passenger service under 14 CFR Part 139, and 1 occurred at a foreign airport

certificated for passenger service.

2 Engine types on the 55 destroyed aircraft were piston (40), turbofan (6), turbojet (2),

turboprop (5), and turboshaft (2). Aircraft operator was business (26), private (24), and

commercial transport (5).

3 Two turkey vultures and 1 unknown species of vulture (either turkey or black).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

61

Table 19. Number of reported wildlife strikes indicating damage or a negative effect-on-flight (EOF) and

reported losses in hours of downtime and U.S. dollars, for civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009.

Number of reports

Cost in millions of dollars ($)

(Number of reports)

Total

reports

Reports

indicating

adverse

effect

Reports

indicating

aircraft

damage

Reports

indicating

negative

EOF

Reported

time (hours)

aircraft out

of service

(No. of

reports)

Direct

cost

Other

cost

Total

cost

20-yr

total 99,411 16,518 11,110 7,489 683,291 372.724 45.028 417.752

(4,853) (2,828) (1,340)

20-yr

avg. 4,971 826 556 374 34,165 18.636 2.251 20.887

(243) (141) (67)

Mean losses per incident reported 140.8 0.132 0.034 0.166

Estimated annual losses

Minimum1116,285 108.852 27.752 136.604

Maximum2581,424 544.259 138.762 683.021

1 Minimum values are based on the assumption that all 16,518 reported strikes indicating an adverse

effect (negative EOF and/or damage) to aircraft (mean of 826/year) incurred similar amounts of

damage and/or downtime and that these reports are all of the adverse-effect strikes that occurred,

1990–2009.

2 Analyses of strike data from 1991–2004 indicated that 11 to 21 percent of strikes were reported for

air carrier aircraft at Part 139 airports certificated for passenger traffic (Linnell et al. 1999, Cleary et al.

2005, Wright and Dolbeer 2005). Analyses of strike data from 2004–2008 indicated strike reporting at

Part 139 airports had improved to 39 percent (Dolbeer 2009a). Strike reporting for General Aviation

(GA) aircraft is estimated at less than 5 percent (Dolbeer et al. 2008, Dolbeer 2009a). Maximum

values for reported losses are based on the assumption that the 16,518 reported strikes indicating an

adverse effect represent, on average, 20 percent of the total strikes that occurred with commercial and

GA aircraft from 1990–2009.

Figures
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

62

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

8000

9000

10000

19

9

0

19

91

19

9

2

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9

4

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9

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N

o. of re

p

orte

d

strike

s

Terrestrial mammals

Birds

Figure 1. Number of reported bird (N = 96,626) and terrestrial mammal (N = 2,307) strikes

to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009. Additionally, 367 and 111 strikes involving bats and

reptiles, respectively, were reported for a total of 99,411 strikes by all species of wildlife

(see Table 1).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

63

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

19

9

0

19

91

19

9

2

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9

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01

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7

2

0

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8

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0

0

9

R

e

p

orte

d

strik

e

s

with

d

a

m

a

g

e

Terrestrial mammals

Birds

Figure 2. Number of reported bird (N = 10,185) and terrestrial mammal (N = 917) strikes

causing damage to civil aircraft, USA, 1990–2009. Additionally, 7 and 1 damaging strikes

involving bats and reptiles, respectively, were reported for a total of 11,110 damaging

strikes by all species of wildlife (see Table 1).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

64

0

5

10

15

20

25

19

9

0

19

91

19

9

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9

3

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9

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0

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5

2

0

0

6

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0

0

7

2

0

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8

2

0

0

9

Strike

s rate

Commercial aviation aircraft

General aviation aircraft

0.0

0.4

0.8

1.2

1.6

2.0

19

9

0

19

9

2

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9

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0

0

6

2

0

0

8

D

a

m

a

g

e

strike

s rate

Commercial aviation aircraft

General aviation aircraft

Figure 3. The strike rate (number of reported wildlife strikes per 100,000 aircraft

movements, top graph) and damaging strike rate (number of reported damaging

wildlife strikes per 100,000 aircraft movements, bottom graph) for commercial (air

carrier, commuter, and air taxi service) and general aviation aircraft, USA, 1990–

2009 (see Tables 2 and 3).
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

65

4

3

5

7

10

8

12

14 13 13

7

5

1

2

5

7 7 8

14

27

15

8

5

1

0

4

8

12

16

20

24

28

32

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

P

erc

e

nt of strik

e

s

Birds (N = 96,626)

Bats (N = 367)

5

4

5 5 5

7

9

10

11

13

18

7

6

5

7

6

7

10

11

13

10

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7

5

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16

20

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

P

erc

e

nt of strik

e

s

Deer (N = 964)

All other terrestrial

mammals (N = 1,343)

Figure 4. The percentage of reported bird and bat strikes (top graph) and deer

and other terrestrial mammal strikes (bottom graph) with civil aircraft by month,

USA, 1990–2009. In addition, 110 strikes with reptiles were reported, of which

58 percent occurred in May–July. Deer strikes comprised 879 white-tailed deer,

55 mule deer, and 30 deer not identified to species.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

66

Commercial aircraft

y = 7196.8e-0.3979x

R

2

= 0.98

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 101112131415161718

Height in feet AGL (x 1,000)

N

o. of re

p

orte

d

strik

e

s

General aviation aircraft

y = 1443e-0.5311x

R

2

= 0.97

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 101112131415161718

Height AGL in feet (x 1000)

N

o. of re

p

orte

d

strik

e

s

Figure 5. Number of reported bird strikes with commercial (top graph) and general

aviation aircraft (bottom graph) in USA from 1990–2009 by eighteen 1,000-foot

height intervals above ground level from 501–1,500 feet (interval 1) to 17,501–

18,500 feet (interval 18). Above 500 feet, the number of reported strikes declined

consistently by 33 percent and 41 percent for each 1,000 foot gain in height for

commercial and general aviation aircraft, respectively. The negative exponential

equations explained 97 to 98 percent of the variation in number of strikes by 1000-

foot intervals from 500 to 18,500 feet. See Tables 10 and 11 for sample sizes.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

67

Bird strikes

0

5

10

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of strike

s

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e

Terrestrial mammal strikes

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Figure 6. The percentage of reported bird strikes (top graph) and terrestrial

mammal strikes (bottom graph) that indicated damage to the civil aircraft, USA,

1990–2009. See Tables 1 and 13 for sample sizes and classifications of damage.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

68

17 16 16 18 18 17 19

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% Id

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Figure 7. The percentage of reported bird strikes with civil aircraft in which the bird

was identified to species, USA, 1990–2009. See Tables 1 and 15 for sample sizes.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

69

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Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

70

APPENDIX A.

SELECTED SIGNIFICANT WILDLIFE STRIKES TO U.S. CIVIL AIRCRAFT, 2009

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, through an interagency agreement with the

Federal Aviation Administration, compiles a database of all reported wildlife strikes

to U.S. civil aircraft and to foreign carriers experiencing strikes in the USA. We

compiled 99,411 strike reports from 1,585 USA airports and 237 foreign airports for

1990 through 2009 (9,474 strikes in 2009). The following 2009 examples from the

database show the serious impact that strikes by birds or other wildlife can have on

aircraft. These examples, from throughout the USA, demonstrate the widespread

and diverse nature of the problem. The examples are not intended to highlight or

criticize individual airports because strikes have occurred on almost every airport in

the USA. Some of the strike examples reported here occurred off airport property

during approach or departure. For more information on wildlife strikes or to report a

strike, visit http://wildlife.faa.gov and www.birdstrike.org.

A Beechcraft 400 departing a Texas airport on 31 July 2009 ingested a recently fledged

yellow-crowned night heron into the #2 engine during the take-off run, causing an

uncontained failure. The pilot aborted take-off. Photo courtesy USDA.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

71

Date: 4 January 2009

Aircraft: Sikorksy S-76C++

Airport: Near Morgan City, LA

Phase of Flight: En Route (700’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Crashed in a marsh

Damage: Aircraft destroyed

Wildlife Species: Red-tailed hawk

Comments from Report: Helicopter crashed while en route to an offshore work

site. Eight people were killed. One seriously injured. Initial analysis of the flight data

recorder indicated that the helicopter was cruising at 138 knots when the cockpit

voice recorder indicated a loud noise followed by a substantial increase in the

background noise level that was recorded on both intercoms and area microphones.

About one second after the loud noise, the torque of both engines dropped

simultaneously to near zero. DNA and feather samples were taken from the

windshield and right side engine inlet filter. Additional swabs were taken from

various parts of the aircraft. NTSB investigated. ID by the Smithsonian, Division of

Birds.

Date: 5 January 2009

Aircraft: B-747-400

Airport: Chicago O’Hare Intl. (IL)

Phase of Flight: Climb (<8,000 AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine #3

Wildlife Species: Red-tailed hawk

Comments from Report: During climb, bird(s) was/were ingested in the #3 engine.

Altitude of strike was not reported, but the aircraft turned back at around 8,000 feet

AGL and dumped 30,000 kg of fuel. ID by the Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Aircraft out of service at least 3 days.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

72

Date: 15 January 2009

Aircraft: A-320

Airport: LaGuardia Intl. (NY)

Phase of Flight: Climb (2,900’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Engines shut down, landed in Hudson River

Damage: Aircraft destroyed

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: During initial climb, aircraft had multiple birdstrikes and

lost thrust in both engines. Pilot ditched in the Hudson River less than 6 minutes

after take-off. Observers in offices along the river said the aircraft narrowly missed

hitting buildings. Several boats were used to rescue the 150 passengers and 5 crew

members as the aircraft sank. Everyone on board survived. Area hospitals treated

several minor injuries and one serious injury. NTSB investigated. ID by the

Smithsonian, Division of Birds. Geese were found to be migratory rather than

resident. Cost of lost aircraft estimated at $36 million.

Date: 17 January 2009

Aircraft: Eurocopter AS 350

Airport: Forrest City, AR

Phase of Flight: En Route (1,200’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Both windshields, chin bubble, engine nacelle, and nose

Wildlife Species: Snow goose

Comments from Report: Helicopter hit a flock of birds around the Forrest City area

and made an emergency landing. The a/c hit about 6 birds. Both windscreens were

broken as well as the nose cone, engine nacelle, and pilot’s chin bubble. The pilot

suffered some minor injuries and everyone was shaken up. The crew members

were not wearing helmets and were fortunate the pilot’s vision remained intact to

land the aircraft. Aircraft was trailered for repairs. Time out of service was 3 months

and costs totaled $100,000.

Date: 1 February 2009

Aircraft: Schweizer G-164B

Airport: Private airstrip near Ferriday, LA

Phase of Flight: Approach (20’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Impacted runway and flipped over

Damage: Destroyed

Wildlife Species: Double-crested cormorant and red-winged blackbirds

Comments from Report: While on short final, the bi-wing aircraft hit a flock of

birds, which penetrated the windscreen and impacted pilot in the face, temporarily

blinding him. Pilot attempted a go-around but aircraft impacted the runway, nosed

over and came to rest inverted. Pilot reported a cormorant came through the

windshield. Photo showed red-winged blackbirds on field. The fuselage sustained

structural damage. NTSB investigated. Aircraft was destroyed.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

73

Date: 3 February 2009

Aircraft: B-757-200

Airport: Denver Intl. (CO)

Phase of Flight: Climb (2,100’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Bald eagle

Comments from Report: Amber alert precautionary landing. Pilot reported seeing

and hitting a large bird during climb through 7,500 ft MSL. Bird hit right side of

engine cowling making a large dent before entering the engine where it damaged all

fan blades. Aircraft returned to Denver. ID by the Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Cost reported to be $14 - $20 million.

Date: 16 February 2009

Aircraft: B-757-200

Airport: Mineta San Jose Intl. (CA)

Phase of Flight: Take-off run

Effect on Flight: Aborted take-off

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: California gull

Comments from Report: Saw gulls during taxi. During take-off run, captain saw

birds on runway, they began flying, resulting in numerous strikes on fuselage and

wings. Right engine began to vibrate significantly. Pilot aborted take-off, exited

runway, and shut down the right engine. Passengers were bused to San Francisco,

where they were booked on other flights. ID by the Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 16 February 2009

Aircraft: Cessna 402

Airport: Fort Lauderdale Intl. (FL)

Phase of Flight: Climb (600’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Windshield

Wildlife Species: Black vulture

Comments from Report: Pilot had just taken off when he saw a flock of vultures

ahead. One smashed through the windshield, hitting the pilot in the face, causing

injury. Blood splattered all over the cockpit. Firefighters were on hand for the

landing. Pilots in the area have reported a growing vulture problem.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

74

Date: 5 March 2009

Aircraft: Agusta 109E

Airport: Shands Hospital (FL)

Phase of Flight: Approach (700’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing at base

Damage: Windshield, switches, light

Wildlife Species: Lesser scaup

Comments from Report: A duck shattered the windshield and entered the cockpit.

The pilot received cuts and an eye injury. A trauma patient was on board as they

approached the rooftop helipad at Shands Hospital. The bird broke switches and

circuit breakers on the overhead instrument panel before landing on the foot of a

crewmember. The aircraft landed at the ShandsCair helipad, rather than on the

hospital roof. Patient was transported by ambulance. ID by the Smithsonian,

Division of Birds, based on photo.

Date: 16 March 2009

Aircraft: B-757-200

Airport: New Orleans Intl. (LA)

Phase of Flight: Take-off run

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine #2

Wildlife Species: Herring gull

Comments from Report: Pilot reported seeing up to 10 gulls on the runway during

rotation. Ingestion caused vibration in the #2 engine. An emergency was declared

and aircraft returned to airport, landing safely. Smoke rings were seen coming from

the engine during landing. Three blades were replaced along with a leaky hydraulic

actuator. Passengers were booked on other flights. ID by Smithsonian, Division of

Birds. Time out of service 24 hours.

Date: 21 March 2009

Aircraft: B-737-800

Airport: Newark Liberty Intl. (NJ)

Phase of Flight: Approach (1,200’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Engine shutdown

Damage: Engine, wing, landing gear

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: On final approach, right engine ingested a Canada goose

and flamed out repeatedly. Safe landing made. Emergency vehicles were

dispatched. Damage to right engine and left leading edge of wing. Nose gear had

bird lodged in it. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

75

Date: 22 March 2009

Aircraft: A-310

Airport: Gerald R Ford Intl. (MI)

Phase of Flight: Take-off run

Effect on Flight: Aborted take-off

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Snowy owl

Comments from Report: Five intake fan blades, 4 fan exit vane platforms, and

acoustic liner sheet were damaged. ID by the Smithsonian, Division of Birds. Time

out of service was 38 hours, cost reported as $303,500.

Date: 3 May 2009

Aircraft: C-414

Airport: Cavern City Air Terminal (NM)

Phase of Flight: Landing roll

Effect on Flight: Lost brakes

Damage: Engine, propeller, wing, landing gear

Wildlife Species: Mule deer

Comments from Report: Three mule deer crossed the runway during landing. The

right engine, right landing gear, and right flaps were damaged. The deer got caught

in the landing gear. The right brakes were lost. Time out of service was 1 month.

Date: 7 June 2009

Aircraft: B-747-400

Airport: Los Angeles Intl. (CA)

Phase of Flight: Climb (150’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Black-crowned night-heron

Comments from Report: At about 1⁄4 mile off end of runway, a bird was ingested

into the # 1 engine, which caused vibrations. Pilot entered a holding pattern to burn

off fuel before returning to land. Seven fan blades were replaced. Time out of

service was 33 hours. Cost of damage and other costs totaled $250,000. ID by

Smithsonian, Division of Birds.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

76

Date: 26 June 2009

Aircraft: Bell 407

Airport: Odessa, DE

Phase of Flight: En Route (700’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Landed in a field

Damage: Windshield, rotor, fuselage, tail, antenna, overhead switch

panel

Wildlife Species: Unknown (possibly vulture or eagle)

Comments from Report: Medic observer caught a brief glimpse of a large bird just

prior to impact as it approached from the left side of the aircraft in the pilot’s blind

spot. Impact took place simultaneously with medic’s warning. Both windshields were

broken. Pilot sustained a small puncture to his left hand and minor lacerations and

contusions to his neck, apparently from the Plexiglas windshield. Helmets were

worn and visors were down. Remains were scattered throughout the cockpit. The

pilot immediately landed in a field. Aircraft had to be trucked out for repairs. Time

out of service was 16 days. Cost of repairs was $25,000.

Date: 29 June 2009

Aircraft: DC-9-31

Airport: Gerald R. Ford Intl. (MI)

Phase of Flight: Approach

Effect on Flight: None

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Mallard

Comments from Report: Remains found over large area covering 25’ x 100’ all left

of runway centerline. Obvious ingestion. Largest piece less than 2.5” by 1”. ATC

had no reports of a birdstrike. Remains found at 1030. Operator found at 1320. Pilot

unavailable. Engine had to be replaced. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 30 June 2009

Aircraft: B-737-800

Airport: LaGuardia Intl. (NY)

Phase of Flight: Approach (900’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Aircraft was towed to gate

Damage: Landing gear

Wildlife Species: Great blue heron

Comments from Report: Aircraft hit a bird on approach. After landing, pilot noticed

the nose gear’s hydraulics were not working. A large bird was found in the landing

gear. Aircraft had to be towed to the gate.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

77

Date: 4 July 2009

Aircraft: Lancair LC-42

Airport: Ocean City Municipal (NJ)

Phase of Flight: Landing roll

Effect on Flight: Ran off runway

Damage: Propeller, landing gear, engine cowling and airframe

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: During landing roll, aircraft hit two Canada geese. The

plane veered off the right side of the runway and hit a concrete runway lightmounting pad. The nose landing gear collapsed and the nose wheel assembly

separated from the landing gear. The right main landing gear and its wheel

assembly were damaged, and the brake wheel backer plate was jammed against its

wheel assembly preventing rotation. The engine was rebuilt.

Date: 7 July 2009

Aircraft: B-737-300

Airport: Baltimore Washington Intl. (MD)

Phase of Flight: Climb (25’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engines #1 and #2, tail

Wildlife Species: European starling

Comments from Report: Birds were ingested in both engines. The number 2 first

stage fan sustained many bent blades and the #1 engine had 1 blade damaged.

The right horizontal stabilizer was dented, and the leading edge was replaced. No

internal engine damage found during borescope inspection. The landing gear, wing,

and radome were hit numerous times but sustained no damage. Approximately 67

starlings were removed from the runway. Aircraft was out of service 4.5 hours.

Date: 31 July 2009

Aircraft: Embraer 120

Airport: Salt Lake City Intl. (UT)

Phase of Flight: Climb (2,600’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Radome

Wildlife Species: White pelican

Comments from Report: A pelican hit the aircraft as it climbed to about 2,600’

AGL. Aircraft returned to the airport with the bird lodged in the radome. Time out of

service was 48 hours. Cost of repairs was $150,000.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

78

Date: 31 July 2009

Aircraft: BE-400

Airport: Sugar Land Regional (TX)

Phase of Flight: Take-off run

Effect on Flight: Aborted take-off, uncontained engine failure

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Yellow-crowned night-heron

Comments from Report: During take-off run, approaching 95 knots, the pilots saw 1

large and 2 smaller birds. The larger bird was ingested into the #2 engine, which

immediately rolled back. Take-off was aborted. The engine cowling and multiple

turbine blades had separated from the aircraft. It is believed that the bird hit the

spinner, which fell into the fan. One wing and material from inside the engine were

sent to the Smithsonian. NTSB investigated. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 15 August 2009

Aircraft: MD-11

Airport: Los Angeles Intl. (CA)

Phase of Flight: Climb (100’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Western gull

Comments from Report: Pilot reported a bird strike upon rotation. The aircraft

returned with a bird ingestion in the #1 engine. Emergency was declared with a

heavy landing. Six turbine blades were replaced. ID by Smithsonian, Division of

Birds. Cost estimated at $135,000, and time out of service was 30 hours.

Date: 17 August 2009

Aircraft: Embraer 175

Airport: Charlotte/Douglas Intl. (NC)

Phase of Flight: Take-off run

Effect on Flight: Aborted take-off

Damage: Engine, landing gear

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: During take-off run, encountered a large flock of geese.

One bird was ingested in the #2 engine, one hit the nose landing gear, and another

hit the right landing gear. The pilot made a high-speed aborted take-off, stopping

safely, and taxied to the apron. The flight was delayed for 2.5 hrs while a

replacement aircraft was brought in. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

79

Date: 29 September 2009

Aircraft: B-727-200

Airport: Memphis Intl. (TN)

Phase of Flight: Approach (3,700’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: None

Damage: Windshield

Wildlife Species: Great egret

Comments from Report: The captain’s front window was struck, and the inner

window panel shattered. Two engines ingested birds but sustained no damage.

Time out of service was 37 hours. Cost estimated at $10,820. ID by Smithsonian,

Division of Birds.

Date: 11 October 2009

Aircraft: MD-88

Airport: Greater Rochester Intl. (NY)

Phase of Flight: Climb (200’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Engine shut down and precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Unknown

Comments from Report: Aircraft hit a flock of birds during climb from ROC. Left

engine stalled, and there was an in-flight shutdown. Unknown if pilot commanded

the shutdown. Returned to land. The left engine had multiple fan blades with major

damage.

Date: 18 October 2009

Aircraft: Piaggio P 180

Airport: Monmouth Executive Airport (NJ)

Phase of Flight: Take-off run

Effect on Flight: Aborted take-off

Damage: Nose, propeller, wing, fuselage

Wildlife Species: Canada goose

Comments from Report: Bird struck the nose cone, which damaged the radar and

avionics bay. Both propellers were damaged. Engine nacelles needed to be

repaired. Minor damage to left wing. Time out of service was 8 days. Cost totaled

$105,000.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

80

Date: 2 November 2009

Aircraft: MD-90

Airport: Phoenix Sky Harbor Intl. (AZ)

Phase of Flight: Climb (9,300’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Fuselage

Wildlife Species: Western grebe

Comments from Report: Bird hit top of aircraft and tore back 18 inches of the

fuselage just above the right flight deck eyebrow window. A second strike tore a

large hole just below the co-pilot’s wing in front of the landing gear. These strikes

activated the depressurization alarm. Aircraft returned to land. NTSB investigated.

ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds

Date: 4 November 2009

Aircraft: BE-99

Airport: Show Low Regional (AZ)

Phase of Flight: Approach (~6800’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Emergency landing

Damage: Windshield

Wildlife Species: Western grebe

Comments from Report: Bird shattered the windshield, injuring the pilot. NTSB

investigated. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 14 November 2009

Aircraft: A 319

Airport: Kansas City Intl. (MO)

Phase of Flight: Climb (4,000’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Snow goose

Comments from Report: Flight had just departed when pilot reported multiple bird

strikes about 4 miles north of the airport. First report was loss of #2 engine. When

the crew attempted to advance the throttle, there was a series of severe

compressor stalls. Passengers described it as fireballs being ejected from the

engine. The crew declared an emergency and returned to MCI. Upon landing, pilot

reported both engines had stalled. Damage to #2 engine consisted of a dent in the

lower lip and a hole in the underside of the cowling. The # 2 engine had internal

damage. NTSB investigated. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.
Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States, 1990–2009

81

Date: 6 December 2009

Aircraft: Embraer 145

Airport: Philadelphia Intl. (PA)

Phase of Flight: Approach (2,000’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Engine shut down

Damage: Engine

Wildlife Species: Snow goose

Comments from Report: Pilot declared an emergency due to a bird strike and

engine shutdown while on approach. A huge bang shook the aircraft, and then the

engine went out. Time out of service was 48 hours, and costs were $306,000. ID by

Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 22 December 2009

Aircraft: B-717-200

Airport: Baltimore Washington Intl. (MD)

Phase of Flight: Climb (3,500’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Nose, wing, fuselage, engine cowling and engine

Wildlife Species: Snow goose

Comments from Report: Multiple strikes with bird debris on wings and nose. The

pilots reported that they hit 6 or 7 geese 4 miles west after departure. Pilots

reported flight control problems, abnormal vibrations in both engines and upon

landing, the #1 engine was smoking. ID by Smithsonian, Division of Birds.

Date: 22 December 2009

Aircraft: B-727-200

Airport: Edmonton Intl. (Alberta, Canada)

Phase of Flight: Climb (100’ AGL)

Effect on Flight: Precautionary landing

Damage: Engine #3

Wildlife Species: Short-eared owl

Comments from Report: Aircraft maintenance performed a bird strike inspection on

the #2 engine after it was removed from the aircraft for ice FOD. Evidence of strike

was found. Time out of service was 41 hours. Costs totaled $1.3 million. ID by

Smithsonian, Division of Birds. (USA carrier)