Naia to use sound vs birds

Airport authorities will install later this year acoustic devices at the 65-hectare Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) property to address the recurring “bird strikes” that have hampered flights.

LRAD—short for Long Range Acoustic Device—is the same US technology being used by, among others, the Joint Maritime Forces and commercial vessels in the Gulf of Aden, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean to repel Somali pirates, and American troops to deter suspected terrorists and insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Manila International Airport Authority (Miaa) is acquiring at least three LRAD units, costing P7 million apiece, said Joseph Agustin, chief of the Miaa’s grounds operations and safety division.

The LRADs are manufactured by the San Diego, California-based American Technology Corp., he said.

With the installation of the acoustic devices, Miaa is aiming for “zero bird strikes” within the 13-kilometer radius of Naia’s four terminals.

The Miaa also plans to install next year a $25-million (about P1.09 billion) radar with bird-dispersing capability, Agustin told the Inquirer.

At present, the Miaa uses pyrotechnics, avian alarms, amplified prerecorded bird distress calls and physical deterrents like balloons to prevent bird strikes.

“These techniques are all very useful in scaring birds, but their coverage area is limited to only 100 to 200 meters,” Agustin said.

The LRADs are stronger, more painful to the ears and have wider coverage, according to Agustin.

LRAD systems are used in many airports worldwide to keep birds and other wildlife from airport runways, he added.

At the Naia alone, more than 50 bird strikes have been recorded since 2003, according to Miaa General Manager Jose Angel Honrado.

In the last six months, Philippine Airlines experienced at least four bird strikes, the latest happening last month.

“They have always been one of our problems,” said Capt. Enrique Clemente, PAL assistant vice president for safety and the environment.

Clemente said that “it’s hard to address the problem because you’re dealing with nature. Birds came first [before] airlines. We’re the intruders in their airspace.”