Coimbatore: Coimbatore airport has reported at least one bird hit every month over the last year. Bird strikes do not cause many air accidents but they do cause hours of delay and expensive repairs for airlines. An RTI reply received by TOI has found that the number of bird hits rose from six in 2013 to 12 in 2014.
The RTI reply from the director general of civil aviation (DGCA) also revealed that the number of bird hits has been increasing over the past five years, but 2014 saw the highest number of incidents. While the airport saw seven bird hits in 2010, it went up to nine in 2011. The number dropped to five in 2012, but again increased to six in 2013 and 12 last year.
Officials say the numbers are surprising because last year the airport acquired six zon guns, which are supposed to fire every few minutes and produce loud noises to scare birds away. Six people are on duty on the runway to scare away birds during the day and 10 at night. They set off firecrackers to scare away birds.
29/03/15 V Ayyappan & Pratiksha Ramkumar/Times of India
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The RTI reply from the director general of civil aviation (DGCA) also revealed that the number of bird hits has been increasing over the past five years, but 2014 saw the highest number of incidents. While the airport saw seven bird hits in 2010, it went up to nine in 2011. The number dropped to five in 2012, but again increased to six in 2013 and 12 last year.
Officials say the numbers are surprising because last year the airport acquired six zon guns, which are supposed to fire every few minutes and produce loud noises to scare birds away. Six people are on duty on the runway to scare away birds during the day and 10 at night. They set off firecrackers to scare away birds.
29/03/15 V Ayyappan & Pratiksha Ramkumar/Times of India
