By Tedong Rantayy
MIRI, Feb 24: The Sarawak Ministry of Transport (MOTS) has directed the Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) to conduct studies on bird strikes at four airports in the State—Mukah, Miri, Limbang, and Mulu—as part of preventive measures to mitigate the risks to aviation safety.
MOTS minister Datuk Seri Lee Kim Shin announced the directive following a discussion today, where pilots and aviation officials raised concerns regarding bird strikes at these airports.
He emphasised the importance of understanding whether the birds involved in these incidents are migratory and identifying the patterns of their movements.
“These are crucial factors in implementing preventive measures to ensure flights are not disrupted,” he added.
SFC representatives were present at the meeting, and Lee confirmed that the agency had been instructed to carry out studies to prevent future incidents.
A bird strike is a collision between a bird and an aircraft in flight, typically during take-off and landing at lower altitudes.
According to the European General Aviation Safety Team (EGAST), bird strikes can lead to severe damage, such as a destroyed windshield that can injure the pilots, clogged air intakes, a broken pitot tube, damaged brake lines, holes or dents in the fuselage or wings, or for helicopters; damaged blades. — DayakDaily
