Racing pigeons blamed after investigation into emergency landing
A Boeing 737 jet was forced to make an emergency landing at Dublin Airport after one of its engines was struck by a flock of racing pigeons.
There were 103 passengers aboard the two-engine flight from Dublin to Bristol but the pilot managed to land the plane safely on one engine.
The Air Accident Investigation Unit (AAIU), in its report published today on the April 2003 incident, said bird strikes by racing pigeons had caused plane crashes and passenger fatalities in several cases.
It found that on the day of the incident, 21,000 racing pigeons had been released in Arklow, County Wicklow to race back to their lofts in Northern Ireland.
“This release had been notified to Air Traffic Control and the possible presence of racing pigeons was broadcast on the Automatic terminal Information Service at Dublin Airport,” the report said.
The AAIU did not identify the airline involved.
An inspection of the plane found that fan blade damage had occurred to the engine and the carcasses of several racing pigeons with their metal rings were found on the runway.
Racing pigeons weigh nearly half a kilo and travel at speeds of up to 70 miles per hour which gives pilots little time to take evasive action.
The Irish Aviation Authority said military aircraft have been damaged due to bird strikes with racing pigeons and in 2003, an executive jet crashed with the loss of all its passengers near Linate airport in Milan.
The release of racing pigeons this year is being tracked this year by the National Bird Hazard Committee (NBCH) with the use of a military helicopter.
In 2003 there were 77 confirmed bird strikes at eight airports in Ireland, and 108 in 2004. However, only the incident at Dublin Airport involved racing pigeons was the one at Dublin Airport.
In the wake of the serious accident, the NBCH and Aer Rianta arranged an urgent meeting with the national pigeon associations.
The Irish Homing Union and the Northern Ireland Pigeon Racing Association agreed to ban the release of racing pigeons on the East Coast.
Pigeons can be released in Tramore, County Waterford and other more westerly points.
Pigeon fanciers north and south of the border are also not allowed to release their birds within an eight-mile radius of named airports.
