Wing From Turkey, joined Oct 2000, 1439 posts, RR: 33 Posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 4 hours ago) and read 1153 times:
Most of the time birds are the only animals easily seen in and around the airports.I don't know why but I guess somehow those animals thinks that we built those concreate runways and buildings for their take offs and landings
Anyways in most airports around Europe there are squarrels and rabbits walking freely around huge metal birds,and from time to time birds of prey are released among them to keep their population under control.But I have seen something which made me laugh and felt helpless.After landing at Oran airport (in Algeria)we taxiied to the ramp.Ground controller told us to park gate number 5.So I was trying to locate where is the yellow line leading to number 5 .I suddenly saw a dog lying on the apron,right over the yellow line leading to stand number 5.I showed it to the captain and we kept moving toward them while moving slowly assuming that they sould move a away when seeing a 737 coming over it.But the dog (which I think claimed the apron for itself) turned its head to us and kept lying right infront of our noseand we stopped.At that point we looked for something (like a car horn)to scare it but we were helpless.It didn't even care when we used "ground call "horn.So asked help from ground control,they said they are sending a car immidiately but we said it would be quicker if we can take stand 4 which is also empty as we were burning fuel .Finally we made 180 at the present position to taxi to no 4 while the dog started barking victoriously to our landing gears.
It was quite a funny scene a dog made a 737 turn back .
Swissgabe From Switzerland, joined Jan 2000, 5187 posts, RR: 44 Reply 1, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 4 hours ago) and read 1112 times:
Have you ever seen cows walking along the runway?
Cox's Bazaar Airport in Bangladesh offers this special feature but some police men remove them before one of the 3 weekly flights from Dhaka and Chittagong arrives
Smooth as silk - Royal Orchid Service /// Suid-Afrikaanse Lugdiens - Springbok
Aircanada From Canada, joined Jul 1999, 148 posts, RR: 0 Reply 2, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 4 hours ago) and read 1072 times:
Several weeks ago I was working a flight (and I forget where it was now...dang DayQuill!). We were taxiing and I was in the jumpseat adjacent to 1L (A320). I was making my arrival annoucements and happened to glance out the window and saw a deer running down the taxiway. My announcement went something like this:
"Please use cation when opening overhead luggage bins as your--what the hell? Is that a deer? Ladies and gentlemen, if you look out the left side of the plane, you will see a DEER on the taxiway."
Why a deer would even be close to an airport is beyond me, let alone how it got onto the tarmac. Apparently some ground staff started chasing it and it eventually jumped over the fence and ran happily on its way.
EdT From United States, joined Nov 2003, 28 posts, RR: 0 Reply 3, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 4 hours ago) and read 1012 times:
Deer and Elk (especially) are a considerable problem for some smaller airports - Flagstaff, AZ comes to mind very high on that list. America West Express (Mesa) has never had to my knowledge a significant incident, but on more than two or three occasions have I watched the side of the runway during takeoff only to see 4-5 Elk.
Okie From United States, joined Jul 2003, 1127 posts, RR: 4 Reply 5, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 3 hours ago) and read 947 times:
I know that in OKC there is considerable buffer zone around the airport particularly south and west of the airport and prime habitat for deer. Several years ago pre 9/11 they had some kind of hunt on the surrounding area to thin the deer out and only allowed "bow" hunters through some type of lottery.
I don't think you will see anything like that post 9/11 so I am not sure what methods are being used to keep the deer population down at this time. My office used to be about a couple miles northwest of the airport and you would see them grazing in the median of the highway early in the mornings around the airport.
KaiGywer From United States, joined Oct 2003, 11100 posts, RR: 42 Reply 7, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 847 times:
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Not to forget the dog that took off from me loading another WF DHC-8. I had the cage by the airstair, and the owner brought the dog to us. Well, the dog didn't wanna get in the cage, slipped out of its collar and took off. Luckily it ran up the stairs and back into the terminal (with me after). A passenger on his way down the jetway stopped the dog. Kind of a funny scene, and by the time I brought the dog back down to the plane, my coworker had got the owner, who put the dog in the cage I wonder what would have happened if the dog would have run towards the runway?
Never Underestimate the Power of Stupid People in Large Groups
IFLYMCO From United States, joined Sep 2003, 472 posts, RR: 4 Reply 8, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 840 times:
I was on a Delta L1011 coming into SFO a few years back. The announcement goes "In 20 years of flying I've never had this happen...there appears to be a stray dog on the runway and airport security is trying to catch it. Well, this gives us an excellent opportunity to do some sight seeing.." We then took a very low and VERY scenic tour of the SF Bay directly over the Bay Bridge and then circling over the Golden Gate with he pilot explaining what everything we were seeing was over the intercom. THANKS to the stray dog!
High_flyr69 From Australia, joined Apr 2001, 503 posts, RR: 0 Reply 11, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 776 times:
Kangaroos are not unusual at all in and around YMML and i take foxes roam around Fairbarn (canberra) as one of my dads flights a couple of year ago was canceled due to an engine fan being broken after sucking in a fox upon taxiing.
jesus loves you but will send your ass to hell if you dare use your brain for thinking.
Sushka From United States, joined Nov 1999, 4784 posts, RR: 23 Reply 13, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 751 times:
Nice story Wing
Once while landing on Provo's RWY 13, I saw three racoons sitting just right of the numbers.
At Paris CDG I saw a wild rabbit inside the fence. Just about 10 feet away from all of the planes on the taxi way. I tried for about an hour to get a good picture of him.
Hisham, That is a really cool picture by the way!!
Seb146 From United States, joined Nov 1999, 6350 posts, RR: 23 Reply 15, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days 1 hour ago) and read 728 times:
Many years ago, the public land fill was off the end of runway 11 at PDT, so there were coyotes, rats, stray dogs and cats, skunk, possum. The landfill has since been closed and the transfer point for garbage moved. Thier airport is on the flat above the town and surrounded by wheat and canola fields. I was there to see one of three QX Dash-8s. They had to wait for a herd of about 8 deer to cross the end of runway 29 before they could leave.
Srbmod From United States, joined Mar 2001, 14187 posts, RR: 61 Reply 17, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days ago) and read 692 times:
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Seen around ATL (this includes roadkill):
Dogs (occassionally they escape from their shipping containers)
Rabbits: both live and roadkill
Rats: Hey with that much trash around there, it's no surprise.
Sinlock From United States, joined Dec 2000, 1474 posts, RR: 4 Reply 19, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 6 days ago) and read 659 times:
I did a search here for the topic but couldn't find it, But.
About 3 years ago There was a story here about a 1200lb Bull Sealion that made it's way on to the Cargo Ramp at SFO. From where it got in he had to "crawl" over 2 miles and across 2 runways to get to the Cargo ramp and no one saw it.
EGGD From United Kingdom (England), joined Feb 2001, 12377 posts, RR: 51 Reply 20, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 5 days 23 hours ago) and read 617 times:
We've had Deer at BRS, i've seen loads of foxes (up REALLY close, i've never been that close to anything like that before) around the perimiter and like Alex I too have a picture of that fox at LHR
MD11Engineer From Germany, joined Oct 2003, 10345 posts, RR: 66 Reply 21, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 5 days 23 hours ago) and read 573 times:
Here in CGN there are hundreds of rabbits living in the grass areas, with foxes feeding of them, occasionally the foxes move between the planes on the ramp area, trying to get hold of rubbish.
In SXF we used to have half tame cats in the Lufthansa hangar, keeping rats and mice away. There were also goose hawks nesting in the rails above the hangar doors. They had a problem with deer and wild boars, but the airport company hired a hunter to shoot them. But the animals learned very fast that he wasn´t allowed to shoot across the runways, so when they noted him coming, they would move across those 200 feet of tarmac, while he had to drive for 2 miles to get to the other side, when they would just move back...
There were also stories about escaped dogs, with one in TXL shot by a policeman when it ran out to the runways, with the owner watching from the terminal... I think the cop was just triggerhappy and needed and excuse to shoot...
ElectraBob From United States, joined Sep 2003, 931 posts, RR: 10 Reply 22, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 5 days 22 hours ago) and read 508 times:
It's been quite a few years back, but there were times when deer would come onto the field at DTW. Can you imagine a Northwest DC-9 smashing into a deer??
Having a smoking section in a restaurant is like having a peeing section in a swimming pool.....
Wing From Turkey, joined Oct 2000, 1439 posts, RR: 33 Reply 23, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 5 days 22 hours ago) and read 506 times:
I just came across this jokes.I thought it may add some fun to this threat. This CFI and his Student are holding on the runway for departing cross traffic when suddenly a deer runs out of the nearby woods, stops in the middle of the runway, and just stands there looking at them.
Tower: Cessna XXX cleared for take-off.
Std: "What should I do? What should I do?"
Inst: "What do you think you should do?"
(think-think-think)
Std: "Maybe if I taxi toward him it'll scare him away."
Inst: "That's a good idea."
(Taxi toward deer, but deer is macho, and holds position.)
Tower: Cessna XXX cleared for take-off, runway NN.
Std: "What should I do? What should I do?"
Inst: "What do you think you should do?"
(think-think-think)
Std: "Maybe I should tell the tower."
Inst: "That's a good idea."
Std: Cessna XXX, uh, there's a deer down here on the runway.
(long pause)
Tower: Roger XXX, hold your position. Deer on runawy NN cleared for immediate departure.
(Two seconds, and then -- I presume by coincidence -- the deer bolts from the runway, and runs back into the woods.)
Tower: Cessna XXX cleared for departure, runway NN. Caution wake turbulence, departing deer.
It had to be tough keeping that Cessna rolling straight for take-off.
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I'm a commercial pilot, and a couple of years ago I was listening to the scanner late at night near DFW airport. I heard the following true to life exchange (the names have been changed to protect the innocent, but it was DFW tower). DFW Tower: "Lonestar 189, clear to land 18R, wind calm."
Lonestar: "Roger, cleared to land 18R."
Lonestar: "Tower, we hit something."
DFW Tower: YOU DID WHAT???
Lonestar: "We hit a small animal or something on the runway. Ya know, some sort of road kill or something."
DFW Tower: "UPS 31 HEAVY, be advised company that just landed ahead of you on runway 18R reports hitting some sort of roadkill."
UPS 31: "That's all right, we'll flatten it out a little bit for ya!"
Jetguy From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 25, posted (5 years 11 months 3 weeks 5 days 15 hours ago) and read 417 times:
A few years ago I remember that Port Columbus (CMH) had a real problem with ground hogs. As has been mentioned, deer and other large animals are a serious problem at many airports in the States.
About four years ago I was departing Meacham Field in Fort Worth, Texas. It was an evening departure and we were deadheading to Houston to pick up some passengers. Just prior to V1 something darted out in front of us and we hit it. We aborted the takeoff and taxied back to the ramp. The tower controller had someone take a truck out on the runway to see if they could find out what we had struck. They found a 200+ pound ferral pig lying dead right on the runway center line! We were extremely lucky, an animal that size, If we had hit it dead on, would have easily taken out our nose or main gear. As it was, he was hit by our nosewheel chine and we suffered no other damage. I spoke with the tower controller and he mentioned that he had to fill out a special form for the FAA. He asked me to wait while he looked for it, but he couldn't find one so he simply took a "Bird Strike Report" and crossed out the word "Bird" and wrote "Pig". (I guess that I'm the only person to have ever filed an FAA Pig Strike Report.) Later, the airport manager told me that there was a herd of ferral pigs that lived within the airport boundaries.
The airport where I am based now, San Diego Gillespie (SEE) has several coyotes that live within its boundaries. The other afternoon, we saw 4 running along the taxiway.
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