What is a Bird Strike?

A bird strike is a collision between an airborne animal (usually a bird or bat) and a moving vehicle (usually an aircraft).

The term is also used for bird deaths resulting from collisions with structures, such as power lines, towers and wind turbines (see bird–skyscraper collisions and towerkill).

A significant threat to flight safety, bird strikes have caused a number of accidents with human casualties.

A bird strike is believed to have been a factor in the South Korea plane crash on December 29 which killed 179 people.