Okay, so bird strikes caused an airliner to splash into New York’s Hudson River last January without serious casualties.
But bird strikes have caused the deaths of more than 200 airline passengers and crewmembers worldwide since 1988.
And wildlife strikes to civilian and military aircraft annually cause more than $600 million in damages and are on the increase.
But no American law requires airlines or airports to report air strikes, although voluntary reporting to the Bird Strike Committee USA has occurred since 1991.
Now the Federal Aviation Agency has blocked public access to its records of collisions between birds and aircraft.
The reason? Information could prompt airports and airlines to not report incidents because the flying public might decide not to fly because of “inaccurate perceptions.”
Let’s give “the bird” to the FAA. (29 MARCH 2009)
