# Bird strikes on aircraft **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 27, 2013, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777 "2013-09-27T03:22:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Grateful-UnDead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ccd318/32.png) [@Grateful-UnDead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grateful-UnDead)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2013, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/1 "2013-09-27T03:22:44Z")
Apparently birds being sucked into jet engines in a not uncommon occurrence. Given the often catastrophic result of such an event, why don’t engine manufacturers place a screen over the engine intakes? Given that this obvious response is not applied, there must be a reason. Can anyone explain why? Thanks ---
**Author:** ![SuperAbe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@SuperAbe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuperAbe)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2013, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/2 "2013-09-27T03:53:09Z")
Because any screen that would effectively stop a 150 mph bird without breaking-up itself would [weigh](http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/nyregion/22engines.html) _a lot_. Most really dangerous strikes happen at takeoff and landing. A modern jet airliner is travelling at 240-320 kph (150-200 mph) at takeoff. A medium size Canada Goose weighs about 5kg (up to ~9kg or 20 lbs, but we’ll go a little small). Let’s assume a ~290 kph velocity (80 m/s). That gives us roughly 16,000 J of energy…about the same energy as a [.50 cal machine gun round](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muzzle_energy#Typical_muzzle_energies_of_common_firearms_and_cartridges). Alternatively (if my math is right), its about like crashing a [Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kawasaki_Ninja_250R) going about 30-35 mph. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2013, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/3 "2013-09-27T04:32:29Z")
Here’s an [earlier thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=502785) asking exactly that. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2013, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/4 "2013-09-27T12:38:01Z")
Yeah, this was discussed to death years ago after that airliner hit two birds and had to land on the Hudson River alongside Manhattan. Short answer is that a screen would have to have reasonably small openings to effectively stop even modest-sized birds, and consequently it would be much, \*much \*too restrictive of the engine’s air intake and would create tremendous aerodynamic drag… ---
**Author:** ![AndrewL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@AndrewL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndrewL)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2013, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/5 "2013-09-27T13:21:38Z")
It would also be a major hazard in icing conditions. To prevent chunks of ice from forming on the screen and either blocking airflow or breaking free and getting sucked into the engine, you’d have to have some system to stop ice from forming on the screen, probably by heating the mesh. ---
**Author:** ![Clark\_Cello](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@Clark\_Cello](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clark_Cello)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2013, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/6 "2013-09-27T14:23:46Z")
I would also question the “often catastrophic results” mentioned in the OP. Catastrophic results from bird impacts are actually pretty rare. ---
**Author:** ![Grateful-UnDead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ccd318/32.png) [@Grateful-UnDead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grateful-UnDead)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2013, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/7 "2013-09-27T23:09:32Z")
Thanks for the replies. That sound you hear is me smacking myself for not having performed a search before I asked the question! ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2013, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/8 "2013-09-28T01:59:03Z")
This would have been a much bigger problem if people hadn’t coincidentally killed all of the passenger pigeons right around the time powered flight became possible. ---
**Author:** ![MannyL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@MannyL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MannyL)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2013, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/9 "2013-09-28T03:01:49Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > This would have been a much bigger problem if people hadn’t coincidentally killed all of the passenger pigeons right around the time powered flight became possible. I don’t see the problem. If they are \*\*passenger \*\*pigeons wouldn’t they be in the plane? ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2013, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/10 "2013-09-28T03:05:16Z")
> [@MannyL](#): > > I don’t see the problem. If they are \*\*passenger \*\*pigeons wouldn’t they be in the plane? I understand that the majority of the seats are reserved for athletic coaches. ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_Pearse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/richard_pearse/32/13144_2.png) [@Richard\_Pearse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_Pearse)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2013, 10:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/11 "2013-09-28T10:18:12Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > This would have been a much bigger problem if people hadn’t coincidentally killed all of the passenger pigeons right around the time powered flight became possible. Coincidentally, the passenger pigeon cull was a topic on a QI episode I watched recently. ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2013, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bird-strikes-on-aircraft/669777/12 "2013-09-28T11:26:18Z")
> [@Clark\_Cello](#): > > I would also question the “often catastrophic results” mentioned in the OP. Catastrophic results from bird impacts are actually pretty rare. Depends on your point of view, I suppose. They’re almost always catastrophic to the bird. 😉