Bird Strikes Plague PIA: 29 Aircraft Impacted in 5 Months

Over the past five months, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has experienced 29 bird strikes at various airports across the country, according to reports.

In May alone, there were 10 bird strikes. These incidents occurred at airports in cities including Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Faisalabad, Sukkur, Quetta, Peshawar, Gilgit, and Multan.

Most of these incidents took place at airports in Karachi and Lahore. Seven PIA planes suffered varying degrees of damage, while the remaining 22 remained undamaged.

Bird strikes pose a significant issue for airlines as they lead to financial losses and temporary grounding of the affected planes. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) report revealed that both national and foreign airlines operating in Pakistan have suffered financial setbacks due to bird strikes. This is primarily due to inadequate cleanliness measures and delays in implementing bird control systems at airports.

From January to May 2022, 48 planes belonging to domestic and international airlines were impacted by bird strikes, resulting in financial losses. Between January 2018 and May 2022, there were 662 reported bird strike incidents in Pakistan.

Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport recorded the highest number of incidents with 198 cases, closely followed by Karachi’s Jinnah International Airport with 192 cases. Other airports, including those in Islamabad, Sialkot, Peshawar, Multan, and Quetta, also reported significant numbers of bird strike incidents.