Summer 2020, Issue 12
Inside this issue:
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Get a cup of your favourite beverage and a comfortable seat because this is going to be a long one…
Airports are reeling due to reduced (almost non-existent) travel this year. In Atlantic Canada alone, traffic is down 80-90% during the March to June period and expectations are that traffic will remain 50-70% lower than previous years during the rest of 2020 resulting in a loss of $118 million revenue based on previous years. The government of Canada has waived the ground lease rents for the 21 airport authorities that are located on federal lands for the rest of 2020 (and also for Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport that pays a charge to the federal government). But this is hardly enough to keep many airports afloat, especially the smaller airports that were already living on borrowed time (or borrowed money). And if airports are hurting (and they are) their clients, the airlines, are suffering even more. Some airlines believe they can survive for one or two quarters, but this situation is likely to take much longer to be resolved. As a result, it is almost inevitable that many airlines will go out of business. While airports and most airlines were able to weather the relatively short downturn in travel resulting from the 9/11 terrorist attack, the Covid attack is not likely to be as forgiving.
When airports and airlines are struggling for survival, allocating funding for wildlife management becomes a low priority item. Staff layoffs at most airports are inevitable and this will affect the airport’s ability to provide the same level of staffing on the airfield. Airports of course need to provide safety for air travel and since wildlife are not self-isolating, they are ever present on the airfield. In fact, with fewer flights, they may be more prevalent than ever. While total number of strikes may drop dramatically this year, the strike rate (strikes per aircraft movement) may rise as a result of greater access for birds to airports due to less aircraft traffic and possibly less resources for wildlife management (e.g., active control, grass cutting, fence maintenance, etc.) at airports.
In my opinion, wildlife control at most airports in Canada was already inadequate. Airports send out relatively poorly-trained staff (i.e., 1-2 days of classroom training every 5 years) whose main interests, experience, training and responsibility is maintenance, fire-fighting, or general aviation-related to do what is actually a technically challenging job – managing wildlife. We wouldn’t want a biologist with two days training acting as a firefighter or performing the duties of an airport safety officer, so why do we settle for amateur wildlife managers (i.e., professionals at something else) managing wildlife at airports? Clearly the answer is cost and lack of regulations requiring otherwise. Even at large airports that have a dedicated wildlife program with full-time personnel, the majority of those personnel do not have academic wildlife training because the cost of employing wildlife professionals simply does not fit the airport’s budget. And now with greatly reduced income, any move to encourage employing professionally trained wildlife managers at airports is ill-timed and fading fast.
What can be done? Transport Canada charges each passenger a fee for security. So why not a fee for air safety that is dedicated for wildlife management? Even one dollar added onto an air ticket would raise about $80-100 million in a normal year and perhaps about $20 million in these pandemic years. Granted this may not cover the entire cost of doing the job of managing wildlife at airports properly since Toronto and Vancouver each spend in excess of one million dollars annually (and even more if you add in related costs) on their wildlife programs. But if there were even $20 million to spread over about 350 smaller airports, each airport would receive about $60,000, enough to hire a full time biologist to manage their wildlife program. And there might be 4-5 times this amount available in better times. I know as a passenger, I wouldn’t even notice a $1 fee on my ticket especially since ticket prices are already skyrocketing – what’s one more dollar?
I used to think that the key to better wildlife management at airports was more and better training. I still think there is a place for that. But you cannot replace the training of 4 years of university biology (especially with a focus on wildlife ecology and behaviour with some applied skills) with a couple of days training here and there. So generally at most airports and almost all smaller airports, personnel are trying to manage wildlife by the seat of their pants. I certainly wouldn’t put my life in the hands of a pilot with such training, so why are we putting entire plane-loads of passengers and crews in the hands of non-professional wildlife managers when there are alternative paths to change?
As I work with the strike data for Canada the case becomes even clearer. Most non-scientists do not understand the importance of collecting good, clean, accurate data (even some scientists are not very good with this). Without good, clean, accurate data we are making management decisions based on inadequate and often erroneous information. Collecting data on strikes, control measures and observations is not always as obvious as it may at first seem. If not done correctly and consistently, we are bound to arrive at wrong conclusions which at best can cost money yielding poor results and at worst can allow extremely hazardous situations to exist without taking adequate and effective action.
I doubt I will see wildlife management programs adequately funded and staffed at all airports in Canada in my lifetime. For this to happen takes leadership and it seems to me there is too much complacency in the government, at most airports, and even within the airlines. We need this to change. So this is me jumping up and down with a placard saying “wildlife management matters”. Who will join me?
Gary F. Searing
Executive Director, Bird Strike Association of Canada
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this editorial are mine and do not necessarily represent those of Bird Strike Canada. Topical issues are often controversial and many different viewpoints exist. As an organization with many and various members, Bird Strike Canada acknowledges and accepts the various viewpoints and tries to achieve a consensus before issuing statements. This editorial is simply one persons viewpoint and presented for consideration and further disciussion.
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The cancellation of this year's Canadian workshop conference leaves a big hole in the bird strike community in Canada. The annual meeting is a time for us to get together, exchange information and ideas, and renew our connections with our colleagues across Canada. I can't imagine allowing two years (and perhaps even more) to go by without that interaction. So I am throwing the subject open for discussion - How do we fill the void? For example, I would be happy to host a series of discussion groups on Zoom. If anyone is interested in making an online presentation, perhaps we could have a series of mini-conferences where we make 2-3 presentations in a row. Perhaps someone wants to make a short video on a technique or special application that could be presented. Or we could just get together online and have a beer and chat. I am open to any and all ideas and perhaps we can put something together to tide us over these strange times. Send me an e-mail with your ideas and I will see if there is any interest in getting something going this fall.
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Military Strikes and Crashes
Certainly the crash of the Snowbirds CT-114 Tutor aircraft in Kamloops and death of Captain Jenn Casey is a tragic reminder of the perils of flight given the presence of birds on and near airports. While the cause of the crash is still to be determined, the video of an object (which could only have been a large bird) in front of the engine air intake before the aircraft malfunctioned leaves little doubt that this accident was caused by a bird strike. Of course, both crew would likely still be alive if the ejection seats and parachutes functioned properly. That is the saddest part of the incident. What could have been done differently to prevent this strike? Clearly the bird that struck the aircraft would have been too high to actively engage it with any conventional methods. Usually by the time the bird is at risk of being struck it is too late to intervene anyway. Therefore, the intervention needs to be done well in advance and often requires patrols off the airfield to insure that there are no birds around to transit the airfield during active flight times. This is a huge task and one that seldom gets done by airports that are resource-challenged and thus necessarily focused on the airfield. Much has been said at bird strike conferences about looking beyond the airfield fence, but with resources at a premium, we are a long way from doing any meaningful control outside of airport lands.
RAF A400M flight deck ‘punctured’ by bird strike
On 24 June 2020 a Royal Air Force (RAF) Airbus A400M had had its flight deck ‘punctured’ by a bird while on operations from Getafe Air Base in Spain. This photo clearly shows the tremendous force a soft-bodied bird has when striking a metal aircraft. Speed is the critical factor.
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BSAC Steering Committee
In the last newsletter we featured three of our newest Bird Strike Committee Canada members. However, we received the bio of one member too later for publication so we are pleased to present it now.
See the full list of Steering Committee Members
Cory Gooch, Manager, Safety Investigations, NavCanada. Cory is on Bird Strike Committee Canada as the Nav Canada Representative
Cory has been with NAV CANADA since 2008 when he first qualified as a controller at Calgary/Springbank Tower. Cory later moved on to become a controller and then a supervisor at Calgary International before accepting a position as Manager, Safety Investigations. Cory has been active in training, developing procedures and providing insight into safety incidents. Outside of NAV CANADA, Cory is heavily involved in community programs. In particular, Cory has been a major contributor to the Calgary Stampede where he currently holds a position on the Nominating and Shareholder Relations Committee as well as leading a diverse team of volunteers and staff members in executing the Draft Horse Town programming.
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Bird Strike Canada assisted two students from Seneca College by providing literature and other input for their capstone research project. The students completed their project entitled “Wildlife control methods at large and small airports” and provided us with a copy of their work. It is available on the BSAC Zotero e-library. Members gain access to this library by request.
Several more recent papers just entered into our Zotero data base struck me as having particular interest.
“Exclusion of Ring-billed Gulls (Larus delawarensis) from recreational beaches using canid harassment” show the importance and utility of dogs in reducing gull presence, but that not all dogs are equally effective.
“Avian responses to aircraft in an airport environment” looked at how birds respond to approaching aircraft. Better knowledge of avian behaviour related to aircraft is a critical component of better management of birds at airports.
“Tracking Canada Geese near airports: Using spatial data to better inform management” followed 31 GPS-collared geese in Chicago. Progressive airports are recognizing the value in learning the detailed movements of birds at their airports and the reduced cost of GPS tags are allowing more of this type of information to be collected.
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Started in December 2018, I just became aware (or was reminded) of a webinar series produced by Loomacres Wildlife Management in New York. I must admit that I have yet to listen to them, but I like the idea and recognize the time and effort required to produce a series of podcasts like this one. With topics ranging from bird identification to drones, to techniques to hazard assessment, there is something for everyone here. Here is the link to episode 1 and the other episodes are listed on this page as well. Have a listen.
https://anchor.fm/airportwild/episodes/Episode-001-Binoculars-and-Bird-Guides-e2r78q/a-a867hb
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Stay-up-to-date! Like and follow us on Facebook and LinkedIn. These platforms are open to all, not just members, and we hope that they provide an easy way for people to connect and discuss ideas and issues related to airport wildlife hazard management.
For those who prefer a more personal touch, feel free to e-mail us at info@canadianbirdstrike.ca. These e-mails do not go into a large corporate vacuum - they come to Pierre Molina and Gary Searing and you will receive a personal reply - guaranteed.
If you have wildlife strike photos, label them and send them to us at photos@canadianbirdstrike.ca and we will have our expert team of birders check the identification of the animal and then we will archive the photo to be cross-referenced with the Transport Canada data base. For instructions on how to take and label photos see our website. |
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As the Covid-19 pandemic has changed our lives from the way we shop to the way we socialize, we want to help keep the Canadian airport wildlife management providers connected and informed. We also want to do our part, even if it is a small part, in assisting the air industry that has been devastated financially. As a result, we have decided to make all corporate memberships for Canadian companies and organizations free from now until 31 December 2020. If you are already a corporate member, your membership will be extended for an additional year. If you are not currently a member but would like to be, simply head over to our website and join - for free. - Gary Searing, Executive Director, BSAC
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If you are a current member of Bird Strike Association of Canada did you know that you can get access not only to the e-library on the BSAC website, but also to our Zotero e-library? We have stopped adding papers to our web library and once all papers from it have been transferred to Zotero, Zotero will be the only BSAC library. We currently have about 1700 papers in Zotero with about another 1000 left to transfer. We have entered about 500 new papers that are only in Zotero. Go to our website to request access.
Also, did you know that we are slowly transcribing the presentations from the North American Bird Strike Conference in Halifax and posting them on our website? This is a long and arduous process being done by one person (me) in my spare time. So you will have to be patient for all of the papers to be completed. Check back periodically to see what new presentations have been added. When completed, these will be added to the Zotero BSAC library.
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The Bird Strike Association of Canada (BSAC aka Bird Strike Canada) is a leader in airport wildlife strike prevention. By fostering dialogue within the industry, the BSAC seeks and advances innovative ideas in aviation safety. Our mandate includes setting standards, addressing industry issues by formulating effective strategies and implementing change through regulatory means.
Bird Strike Canada is a strong advocate for what concerns members from every sector of Canadian aviation. Validating research and the implementation of industry developments that support methods of mitigating bird strike risk are keynotes of the association. An important directive of Bird Strike Canada is developing best practices as well as the standardization of airport wildlife strike prevention data and training. Bird Strike Canada has collected literature on bird strike research from around the world and makes this availableon-line to all of our members. Knowledge of effective strategies, policy and technologies assist wildlife managers achieve the best results possible at their airports.
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