Bird Strike Committee Proceedings
Date of this Version
October 2002
Abstract
The islands of Micronesia support small, but growing, commercial and military aviation routes. A developing tourism industry, coupled with increased demands for military training sites, is bringing aviation traffic to remote and occasionally primitive island settings. While flight volumes are low relative to mainland settings, the nature of aviation in the islands is that of self- sufficiency and minimal infrastructure, which creates difficult flight situations. Pilots flying island routes face numerous challenges, including wildlife hazards that are generally unmitigated. Although major infrastructure and safety improvements have been made across many of the civilian airports in Micronesia, the impact of wildlife on aviation safety has not been thoroughly addressed; several CFR 139-certificated airfields lack basic information regarding the hazards specific to each island and most operate with no operational hazard management activities. Migratory shorebirds, resident sea birds, and resident mammals create the most severe hazards, while introduced and native forest birds present increasing hazards in some locations. This presentation will review what is known about wildlife hazards in the tropical Pacific and provide recommendations for future management actions.