The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines announced that it is working with AirAsia Philippines to mitigate bird strikes, especially in Tacloban, a key city in the centre of the country.
AirAsia Philippines officials made the announcement on Thursday, 11th September.
Per the airline’s report to CAAP, there was a considerable presence of birds within the runway environment and surrounding areas of Tacloban airport, hence the need to mitigate wildlife-centric incidents.
In response, CAAP committed to deploying a team of biologists and wildlife experts to coordinate with local authorities to address the issue.
As AirAsia Philippines president Suresh Bangah puts it: "Wildlife hazard management isn’t something airlines can do alone: it requires a collective effort among government, airport operators, and the entire industry. We are proud to work closely with CAAP, ACAP, airport partners, and fellow airlines to ensure that our skies stay safe for everyone.”
What are bird strikes?
A bird strike is a collision between a bird in flight and an aircraft, which usually happens during takeoff or landing.
The damage it causes varies and may potentially disrupt flight schedules, affecting maintenance requirements and impacting overall airline operations.
According to an AirAsia Philippines report, more than 90 bird strike incidents in several domestic airports were reported between January and August of this year.
Most of these were apparently low-consequence occurrences that were routinely managed by a safety risk management process.
However, there were six incidents which caused damage to aircraft components.
AirAsia claimed that, in all these incidents, flight safety was never compromised, with only temporary aircraft inspections, repairs, and short delays noted.
The airline also actively participates in the Air Carriers Association of the Philippines (ACAP) safety sub-committee, where airlines share data and align strategies for nationwide wildlife hazard management.
Furthermore, crew advisories were intensified at high-risk airports, and coordination among its flight operations, engineering, and ground teams was enforced to ensure immediate inspections and strict reporting protocols.
