Four Corners Regional Airport assesses wildlife hazards

FARMINGTON Birds, coyotes and rabbits, oh my!

Farmington's Four Corners Regional Airport has assessed its wildlife hazard level, and some work needs to be done to meet federal guidelines.

On Jan. 15, 2009, US Airways flight 1549 flew into a flock of geese, causing it to make an emergency landing in the Hudson River. In response, the Federal Aviation Administration mandated that all certified airports perform a wildlife hazard assessment.

The assessment of Farmington's airport found a significant potential for wildlife hazards year-round with an increase during annual migrations from birds such as waterfowl, raptors, corvids, doves, blackbirds and starlings.

Also present, with the potential to cause direct or indirect hazards, are a variety of mammals, including deer, coyote, foxes, rabbits, prairie dogs and other rodents.

"We take this very seriously," said Airport Manager Ben Trujillo. "We like to be proactive and get things fixed before there is a problem, which is why we are ahead of the curve getting this assessment done."

The assessment is a draft, and once airport users and local, regional and federal officials have had time to comment, a final draft will be submitted to the FAA.

"At that point, we will attach it to our certificate and be mandated to follow its guidelines," Trujillo said. "We are already taking steps to mitigate the hazards."

According to the FAA, wildlife strikes cause an estimated $600 million in damage annually, with birds being the most common culprit.

Four Corners Regional Airport hasn't had any serious problems caused by wildlife. Since 1997, there have been seven wildlife strikes by aircraft with only one resulting in damage. Five of those strikes were birds.

In September, a medium prop-driven plane hit a large bird and sustained minor damage. The other animal strikes resulted in no damage to the planes involved, even when a smaller airplane hit a coyote in 2001.

Local pilot Johnny Arrington had just taken off last month and was circling over the river when he hit a duck.

"I hit the duck at about 5,500 feet," Arrington said. "It put a little dent in the plane. I wasn't too worried because it didn't hit anything important like the props or windshield."

In the last year, Arrington has seen more birds than normal.

"We are on a flyway and there are a lot of them," Arrington said. "I've been flying for 50 years and hit a few ducks in smaller planes. I've hit birds in big planes a number of times, but often you don't even notice."

The assessment came up with 17 recommendations for mitigating hazards, some of which airport officials already implemented. Many of the recommendations are procedural, like designating a wildlife coordinator or improving strike reporting.

Physical changes include removing shrubs and weedy vegetation from safety areas, draining areas of standing water, constructing a new perimeter fence and continued removal of large mammals and other hazardous wildlife.

"All airport personnel including myself have been trained in wildlife mitigation," Trujillo said. "We also have the equipment to do so, like bird bangers and bird screamers. They are essentially little pistols that fire a firework into the flock of birds."