Development of Birdstrike Risk Assessment Procedures, Their Use on Airports, and the Potential Benefits to the Aviation Industry

Authors

J. R. Allan, Birdstrike Avoidance Team, Sand Hutton, York, YO41 1LZ UK
A. Orosz, San Francisco International Airport, San Francisco, CA
A. Badham, Gatwick Airport, West Sussex, RH6 0NP UK
J. Bell, Central Science Laboratory, Birdstrike Avoidance Team, Sand Hutton, York, YO41 1LZ UK

Date of this Version

October 2002

Abstract

Over the past 2 years, CSL has been involved in the development of formal risk assessment procedures for the birdstrike hazard to aircraft. These risk assessments have now been carried out at all BAA airports in the UK, and the impact of this process on the bird management at the different airports can begin to be assessed. The risk assessment process itself has also been refined over the same period, and calculations made to determine how the various target levels for birdstrike frequency, particularly those which, if not met, require further bird management to be undertaken, relate to absolute levels of risk (e.g., risk of financial loss or of a catastrophic accident). In parallel to this, calculations have been undertaken to determine the costs of birdstrikes to world aviation. This has involved obtaining data from particular airlines and extrapolating to the world fleet. As the airlines gather more data, the cost estimates have been refined. The impact of improvements generated by the risk assessment process can now be expressed in terms of costs saved to the industry. This paper presents the latest developments in this process, demonstrates the benefits of proper risk assessment in birdstrike prevention, and advocates the adoption of formal risk assessment in airport bird control world wide.