Wildlife Hazard Mitigation

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FAA Wildlife Hazard Mitigation Program

During the past century, wildlife-aircraft strikes have resulted in the loss of hundreds of lives worldwide, as well as billions of dollars in aircraft damage. In 2009, US Airways flight 1549 collided with a flock of Canada geese shortly after departing from LaGuardia International Airport (LGA). That incident in particular increased public awareness of wildlife strikes and highlighted the many challenges associated with balancing of wildlife hazards and safe airports operations.

The Federal Aviation Administration maintains a comprehensive program to address wildlife hazards. Through policy and guidance, research and outreach, we strive to stay ahead of the issue. This website serves as a repository of information related to the FAA’s overall program.

One of the most widely utilized functions of this website is the reporting of wildlife strikes. If you would like to report a strike or just want to explore the available strike data, please visit FAA’s Wildlife Strike Database.

Reports on Wildlife Strikes to Aircraft

• Trends in Wildlife Strike Reporting, Part 1 (PDF)
  Voluntary System 1990-2008
• Trends in Wildlife Strike Reporting, Part 2 (PDF)
  Sources of Data in Voluntary System
• Annual Report: Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States (1990-2011) (PDF, 3.42 MB)
  A Comprehensive Report on Wildlife Strikes to Aircraft.
• Significant Wildlife Strikes to Civil Aircraft in the United States (1990 - 2012) (PDF, 1.87 MB)
  US Department of Agriculture U.S. Department of Agriculture / Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service / Wildlife Services.

Valuable Links

• USDA National Wildlife Research Center
• Smithsonian Institution's Feather Lab
  Identification of Bird Species from Strike Remains.
• Bird Strike Committee (BSC-USA)
• International Bird Strike Committee (IBSC)

Have a suggestion? Please submit your suggestions to the project lead: Ryan King