SHOOTING GULLS REDUCES STRIKES WITH AIRCRAFT AT JOHN F. KENNEDY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

The collision of birds with aircraft is a serious problem at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFKIA), New York City. Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) personnel reported 98-315 aircraft striking birds each year at JFKIA from 1979 to 1992 (Fig. 1). These strikes have caused millions of dollars in damage to aircraft and represent a significant threat to human safety. From 1979 to 1992, bird strikes at JFKIA resulted in 46 aborted take-off s and 43 damaged engines (29 required repair, 14 required replacement). Two recent serious incidents involving heavily loaded Boeing-747 aircraft occurred in May 1991 and March 1992 after gulls were "ingested" into engines. One aircraft aborted take-off and required replacement of brakes and 10 tires after a high-energy stop on the runway. The other aircraft released 90,700 kg of fuel to return safely to JFKIA (letters of 10 May 1991 and 17 Mar 1992 to PANYNJ from Northwest Airlines and Japan Airlines, respectively). From 1979 to 1992, JFKIA has averaged 270,000 aircraft movements (arrivals and departures) with >30 million passengers annually (PANYNJ, unpubi. data). A nesting colony of laughing gulls (Larus atricilla) is adjacent to JFKIA in Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge (Fig. 2), which is administered by the U.S. National Park Service (NPS). This colony increased from 15 nesting pairs in