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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 3/26/2004 10:39 PM   
redneck


 

Posts: 57
Score: 100
Joined: 1/27/2003
Last Login: 2/10/2008
From: Shelbyville, MO, USA
Status: offline 		Accidents can happen, but I wouldn't let my local conservation agent catch me "harassing" any kind of birds or any wildlife for that matter. They seriously frown on such behavior !!

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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 3/28/2004 11:20 AM   
Grampaw


 

Posts: 548
Score: 105
Joined: 10/31/2002
Last Login: 1/12/2011
From: Opelousas, LA, USA
Status: offline 		I saw a film on a Hang Glider pilot who flew with Eagles. After having one particular bird come out to play and follow him around, getting pretty close at times, and seemingly trying to land on top, he rigged a perch on top of the wing,
thinking the Eagle might land and hold on, and he did. After that first ride, each time the pilot took his Hang Glider out into the Eagle's territory the old boy would come out to play and latch on. It was a sight to see, that Hang Glider soaring around those canyons with that big bird perched up top, it's wings outstretched. This was not a tame bird either. He probably just liked Hang Gliders and enjoyed letting some one else do the flying now and then.

And while not related to the original query...one day I went out to fly an Astro Electric and my daughter came along. She was sitting on top of my pickup. It was late afternoon and I was doing lazy circles above the strip when she yelled "Don't hit the birdy Dad! At that instant two passing Egrets took evasive action to avoid a collision with my plane!

We have lots of Egrets around, which we call "Cowbirds" as they are mostly found in pastures with livestock, feeding on insects. Late afternoons they head for their night roosting spots, usually in swampy areas full of trees. These two were not with the "main body" I had seen higher up. They were coming in on an angle probably to catch up with them.

After the "near miss" one of them banked shaply and pulled in alongside my plane. It was grey colored, same as my model, and I thought it was going to attack, which is not common to these birds. But it leveled off on my left wing and flew a couple of circuits with me, it's head turned towards my plane as if giving it a good look see, maybe flirting with it! Well, it was grey, my plane was grey, and it
was very quiet...electric, remember? Maybe the Cow Bird thought the motor hum
was a song?

After few rounds he pulled up and banked away heading back to catch up with his friend orbiting about 50 yards over, waiting for him...or her? Not as exciting as a strike, but it was an interesting few minutes, and my daughter got a whole new perspective on Dad's toys. I got a few seconds to appreciate watching a beautiful bird slow flying down low with my model. That don't happen every day!

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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 3/28/2004 6:00 PM   
ifixairplanes


 

Posts: 1513
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Joined: 12/28/2003
Last Login: 10/21/2011
From: haverhill, MA, USA
Status: offline 		grampaw! thanks for those 2 very interesting stories!

sean

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"We request that model aviation not be innocently sucked into a black hole of regulation..."

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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 3/29/2004 5:05 AM   
grippm



Posts: 23
Score: 100
Joined: 8/26/2002
Last Login: 9/8/2004
From: Jackson, TN,
Status: offline 		I hit two within 30 days, with two different planes, pics on our website. First one I was flying my trusty Johnny Casburn Lucky Fly, hit a starling head on, it tore the spinner off the front, killed the engine, the bird slid off to the side and took a large chunk out of the leading edge of the foam wing. Made a perfect dead stick landing. Second time was with a Something Extra, I was just showing out and seeing how many rolls I could do before losing it. Must have flown thru a small flock of starlings, the bird went completly through one wing and stuck on the bottom side of the other wing. Now that was an adventure trying to get that one back into the field with that big hole on one side and the dead weight on the other.

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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 3/29/2004 6:50 AM   
rugrad02


 

Posts: 25
Score: 100
Joined: 3/27/2004
Last Login: 6/2/2005
From: Fredericksburg, VA, USA
Status: offline 		Saw 2 beautiful mature Bald Eagles at the field. They didnt seem to be bothered by our planes. Everyone most definately kept away from that side of the field.

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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 5/18/2004 7:17 PM   
paladin


 

Posts: 2628
Score: 250
Joined: 2/14/2002
Last Login: 5/22/2013
From: Vestal, NY, USA
Status: offline 		Yesterday was windy but I figured I would try it any way so I went down to the vestal fire dpt. Practice ground behind the Drovers Inn. Charged up the GWS zero and launched her, she took right off and seamed to have more power than ever before, I had to add in four clicks of down elevator. After two minutes of flight time I still had lots of power but was getting ready for the quick loss of power so I was staying close to the access road for a quick landing. I had just finished the down wind turn when I herd geese, and really close too. I did not pay any further attention because they always avoid our planes so I continued to fly in a straight up wind path parallel to the access road at a height that would allow me to make a 180degree turn onto the access road when my peripheral vision filled with Geese! I looked to see about 30 geese that must have been in the swamp below the access road climbing and trying to get into the vee formation. I looked back at my plane only to realize we were on a collision path!

I decided that with all the birds I had tried to hit unsuccessfully and the way they were so much more maneuverable than I the best tactic would be to not change direction in the hope that they will see my olive drab airplane and move out of the way. I remember watching my plane disappear into this furl of geese and thinking no way am I getting out of this unscathed just as the right wing hit one of the birds in the chest and foam bits began to rain down at my feet. Knowing that all the parts would be close gave me the opportunity to watch the dirty bird that had done in the zero. He initially dropped 3or 4ft then picked up the pace and rejoined the formation.

The zero is mostly back together and should be ready to fly this afternoon but now I have another story for midair number eleven. Also I wont need to worry about how it looks any more.

Joe Felice

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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 5/19/2004 7:33 PM   
kdheath



Posts: 1275
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Joined: 11/9/2002
Last Login: 8/26/2007
From: Rochester, MN, USA
Status: offline 		When I was a kid, I was watching Riley Wooten practice flying controlline combat under the lights at our CL field. A pigeon dove through the circle after the plane and Riley took a cut at him and missed. The bird came through again, and Riley missed again. The third time, Riley centerpunched him with a howling Fox 36X. It looked like someone lit a bomb under that pigeon....Let that be a lesson in not pushing one's luck.

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RE: anyone ever hit a bird?? - 5/19/2004 10:12 PM   
Thumper1


 

Posts: 79
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Joined: 5/21/2002
Last Login: 9/21/2005
From: Moxee, WA, USA
Status: offline 		Three experiences with birds:
1) Flying my Sig Wonder, I turned to fly past the flight line when two mallard ducks flew about 100 feet in front of me. I was catching them pretty fast, the closer I got, the harder and faster they flapped their wings trying to get back over the pond where they live. When they finally made it over the pond, one of them went straight down, diving into the water, the other one made a 90 degree climb. I never got close and was laughing so hard I almost crashed the plane.
2) One of our glider pilots had his glider attacked by a red tail hawk. Put talon marks on the top of the fuselage.
3) Recently, one of our guys bought one of those electrics that flap the wings. Had a red tail fly over and look it over. Must have decided that it didn't look like it had enough meat on it's bones to bother with.
We have red tail hawks and ducks around our field all the time. They usually ignore the planes. We discourage anyone from harassing them.

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