Honk, If You Like Geese!

Honk! I love geese. Not long necked geese particularly; but the shorter necked fat ones. I do not know the breed names. I have fond memories of feeding the geese in Elm Park as a child.
 

Geese are fine on the ground. You wouldn't want to be flying in a passenger jet and have a few, or even one ingested by your engines, would you? Ask Sully, he will tell you that it's an experience when it happens.
 
Bird strikes serious danger since Wright Brothers

"The first reported bird strike occurred in 1905 when Orville Wright struck a bird over an Ohio cornfield. The press kit of “Bird Strike Committee USA” online relates the early history of bird strikes".
air-travel-concept-as-a-flock-of-flying-birds-or-geese-organized-in-EG56A7.jpg
 

I can remember when we took off from San Diego in the spring and there was an enormous amount of seagulls right along the shoreline where I was making my turn to land at the airport. I knew almost immediately that had I continued my course that I would probably go through the flock, so I quickly radioed the ATC's that I was climbing NOW! We went into a steep climb to avoid the birds while also scaring some of the passengers. After we had leveled off, we had to do a go around, so I had the F/O make an announcement letting the passengers know that we had to take evasive action, rather than risk ingesting any birds and maybe having to make an emergency landing. As the passengers exited the plane after landing, some of them thanked us for being alert and quick thinking. I felt very good about the decision we made and we also did not have to make an NTSB report.
 
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Hate geese with a passion. My grandparents kept a few. Meanest critters on the farm. They would hang around the calf pen and attack any child that came near. They respected the adults,and I learned to become very assertive with them.
 
Over the many years That I had been a pilot, I can remember on several occasions reading in our union magazine about accidents and emergency landings caused by planes having their engines ingest geese and gulls. In some cases, passengers lost their life, but I believe thinking back that most of those accidents were caused outside the U.S.

It was about 12-15 years ago that I first tasted Canadian Goose. It had been slow cooked and was brought in to the crew lounge by a pilot from Air Canada. When I first tasted it, I really wasn't awed by it, but I think that was because I was expecting the worse, so it may have been psychological. As I took a few more bites, I have to admit that it wasn't all that bad and was certainly better tasting than I had expected. In fact, I wouldn't mind having some again, but I don't think that I could get my wife to prepare it.
 
oldman said:
I can remember when we took off from San Diego in the spring and there was an enormous amount of seagulls right along the shoreline where I was making my turn to land at the airport. I knew almost immediately that had I continued my course that I would probably go through the flock, so I quickly radioed the ATC's that I was climbing NOW! We went into a steep climb to avoid the birds while also scaring some of the passengers. After we had leveled off, we had to do a go around, so I had the F/O make an announcement letting the passengers know that we had to take evasive action, rather than risk ingesting any birds and maybe having to make an emergency landing. As the passengers exited the plane after landing, some of them thanked us for being alert and quick thinking. I felt very good about the decision we made and we also did not have to make an NTSB report.
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Where I live the seagulls are bad. Many methods have been tried to scare them off. Of course they are protected so you can't poison them or shoot them or anything like that.

The present method is to send dogs out to chase them off the runway before take offs. Also a falconer has been hired.

Is there any way I can unhonk?
 
Camper6 said:
Where I live the seagulls are bad. Many methods have been tried to scare them off. Of course they are protected so you can't poison them or shoot them or anything like that.

The present method is to send dogs out to chase them off the runway before take offs. Also a falconer has been hired.

Is there any way I can unhonk?
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Down in Houston, the airport and United Airlines have done a combined effort of getting rid of all birds around the airport by putting out poison corn. It's not a good site to watch, but has been effective.

Careful: NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART!!

 

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