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Artificial Grass Prevents Bird Strikes

Airport runway areas that are inhabited by wildfowl can be hazardous to planes due to bird strikes; a bird strike can be defined as a collision between airborne animals (such as geese and gulls) and an aircraft, usually by hitting the windscreen or flying into the engines. Bird strikes happen most often during take-off, landing or low altitude flight. Research shows that artificial grass discourages birds from the immediate area and can thus reduce the problem significantly.

Although fatal accidents involving civil aircraft are quite low, bird strikes are estimated to cause annual damage of $1.2 billion US dollars to commercial aircraft worldwide.

Birds are attracted to an airport environment because food, water and habitat are present. The majority of bird strikes occur within immediate airport surroundings. Therefore the most logical place to begin correcting the problem is on and near the airport. Airport management has a legal responsibility to maintain a safe operating environment and this includes taking precautions to avoid bird strikes.

Airport Landscaping

The landscape surrounding a runway is often natural grass so replacing this with artificial grass (astro turf) will greatly discourage birds from the area. The underlying soil of natural grass contains earthworms and other food sources for birds. The absence of these nutrients will discourage birds from inhabiting the area.

Another problem with natural grass is its inability to support an airplane in the event of it moving off the runway. This may result in airplane getting stuck in the soil surrounding the runway because of its softness and irregularity. Artificial grass with the appropriate underlay can be used to provide a more stable surface that can potentially support aircraft that has veered off.

For more information on how artificial grass can be used in an airport landscaping environment, call As Good As Grass on 0845 2211 345.