How to Use this Book

• Introduction
• Accessing the information you need
• Terminology and conventions

Introduction

Sharing the Skies is a guide for everyone in the aviation community — a compendium of knowledge intended to generate both an understanding of and a reduction in the problems that arise when wildlife and aircraft interact. Whether you are a pilot, air traffic service provider, air operator, wildlife manager, airport operator, regulator, aircraft or engine manufacturer, this book will provide you with valuable information on managing the risks associated with wildlife strikes.

You will gain the most knowledge by reading Sharing the Skies in its entirety; however, each chapter is written to stand alone and offer valuable specific information. We recommend all members of the aviation community read the Introduction as well as Chapters 1 and 2. The Introduction provides an overview of the nature and extent of the wildlife-strike problem. Chapter 1 will help readers develop an appreciation for both the high industry costs incurred through wildlife strikes, and the extensive liability issues associated with the problem. Chapter 2 explains the fundamental importance of the System Safety Approach in wildlife-risk management.

Sharing the Skies is not an operational manual. Readers seeking guidance on the management of individual wildlife species in airport environments are directed to such publications as Transport Canada's Wildlife Control Procedures Manual.

 

Accessing the information you need

This book is structured to both describe the wildlife-strike problem and prescribe solutions.

Chapters 1 - 7: Descriptive Overviews of Relevant Topics

Chapter 1	Wildlife Costs
Chapter 2	Wildlife-strike Prevention and the System Safety Approach
Chapter 3	Birds
Chapter 4	Mammals
Chapter 5	The Aviation Industry
Chapter 6	Airport Operations
Chapter 7	Wildlife-strike Statistics

 

Chapters 8 - 12: Prescriptive Wildlife-strike Recommendations and Solutions

Chapter 1	Wildlife Costs
Chapter 8	Airport Operators
Chapter 9	Air Traffic Service Providers
Chapter 10	Flight Crews
Chapter 11	Air Operators
Chapter 12	Engine and Airframe Manufacturers

 

Chapters 13 - 15: Supplementary Information and Conclusions

Chapter 13	The military perspective on wildlife strikes
Chapter 14	An overview of new technologies that may provide solutions to wildlife-strike problems in the future
Chapter 15	Conclusions and suggestions for further efforts to reduce risks associated with wildlife strikes

 

Appendices A - E: Supplementary Reference Material

Appendix A	Information on various bird-strike committees
Appendix B	Metric and Imperial conversion factors
Appendix C	How to report bird and mammal strikes
Appendix D	Aviation- and wildlife-management regulatory references
Appendix E	A list of suggested references (Bibliography)

 

Relevant Reading by Specific Discipline

Segment of Aviation Community	Understanding the Wild-strike Problem	Managing the Wildlife-strike Risk
Airport Operators	Chapters 3 - 7	Chapters 8 - 14
Air Operators	Chapters 5 - 7	Chapters 9 - 11
Wildlife-management Personnel	Chapters 3 - 7	Chapter 8 - 14
Air Traffic Service Providers	Chapters 5 - 7	Chapter 9
Engine & Airframe Manufacturers	Chapters 5 - 7	Chapters 12 & 14
Pilots	Chapters 5 - 7	Chapters 9, 10 & 14

 

Terminology and conventions

The authors refer generally to Air Traffic Control personnel, Flight Service Specialists and Air Traffic Services personnel as ATS providers. We define a hazard as the conditions or circumstances that could lead to damage or destruction of an aircraft, or to loss of life as a result of aircraft operations. Risk is defined as the consequence of a hazard, measured in terms of likelihood and severity.

In aviation and biology, both the Imperial and Metric systems of measurement are used, therefore both systems are incorporated in this publication. Imperial and Metric conversion tables are provided in Appendix B.

Throughout the book, currency references are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise noted.

Finally, while Sharing the Skies gathers information from numerous sources, the authors have avoided the excessive use of footnotes and references in an effort to ensure concision and readability. Nevertheless, an exhaustive bibliography in Appendix E provides a chapter-by-chapter list of references.