Abstract
Collisions between aircraft and birds and other animals occur frequently
and are known in the aviation industry as wildlife strikes. They are
considered to be one of the most serious safety and financial risks to
the global aviation industry. The International Civil Aviation
Organisation, a United Nations specialised Agency, requires that the
appropriate authority shall take action to eliminate or to prevent the
establishment of any source which may attract wildlife to the aerodrome,
or its vicinity, unless an appropriate wildlife assessment indicates
that they are unlikely to create conditions conducive to a wildlife
hazard problem. Namibian airports reduce the wildlife strike risk by
managing the airport habitat and actively chasing birds and other
hazardous animals away. The bird strike risk in airspace between
airports is not managed or assessed in Namibia. Following one
White-Backed Vulture strike and several reports of near-misses with
vultures by pilots of small aircraft, this study investigated possible
collision hotspot areas considering small commercial aircraft flight
paths and vulture movement areas. The study used spatial proximity
analysis and temporal overlap to compare telemetry and nesting location
data for the three most commonly encountered vulture species to flight
paths and times of small commercial aircraft. Collision risk hotspots
were identified over three national parks: Etosha, Waterberg and the
Pro-Namib portion of the Namib-Naukluft. Ascending from, or approaching,
Hosea Kutako International Airport from the east was identified as a
particular risk for White-backed Vulture conflict, while risk of
Lappet-faced vulture strikes was high to the east of Walvis Bay airport.
Flight times of vultures and aircraft corresponded greatly, increasing
the collision risk. The recommendations of this work are that pilots of
small commercial aircraft should be made aware of particular risk areas,
and that landing at Hosea Kutako from the east, or taking off in an
easterly direction should be minimised when wind conditions allow, to
reduce vulture collision risk.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 41-49 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Namibian Journal of Environment |
Volume | 4 |
Issue number | A |
Publication status | Published - 28 May 2020 |
Keywords
- Aircraft
- Cape vulture
- Lappet-faced vulture
- Namibia
- White-backed vulture
- Wildlife strike