Bird watching is mandatory

Alarmed over increasing incidents of both scheduled and unscheduled airline operators concealing incidents of bird hits, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has warned the operators of action. The regulator has asked all of them to send quarterly reports with an aim to augmenting safety in the skies. A senior Air Safety official told MiD DAY that the DGCA has written a letter to all scheduled and unscheduled operators and airports to send a detailed report within seven days and file quarterly reports.
"Actual bird incidents are much more than those reported, as many of the bird strikes go unreported. The data is of prime importance for the prevention of accidents in the future," said the official, who wished not to be identified.
Also, bird strike poses threat to safety of aircraft and passengers which results in expensive repairs to aircrafts, delays and losses to operators, he added.
Data regarding bird strikes also requires to be reported to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) by operators in various countries across the world.
According to Delhi airport sources, the airport witnessed 67 bird-hit cases in 2008 while it was only 30 in 2007.
30/09/09 Surender Sharma/MiD DAY

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Categories: Airports Sep 2009, Safety Sep 2009