It's no secret that Sacramento International Airport sits beneath a bird migration path. But what happened on Tuesday is unusual. Two planes from the same airline struck birds, almost within the same hour. And a third plane was struck later in the day.
At about noon, an incoming Southwest Airlines flight from Ontario, CA collided with some birds three miles away from the airport, according to the airline and an airport spokesperson. They say another Southwest plane, departing Sacramento for Las Vegas at approximately 1 p.m., had to turn around and land after a couple of large birds collided with the windshield within one minute of takeoff.

"All the passengers were fine. Both aircraft landed safely. There was no damage to either aircraft," said airport spokesperson Karen Doron. Doron added that a mechanic replaced a windshield wiper on one of the planes because of the mess caused by the bird strike.

Shortly after 9 p.m, the crew of a third plane reported a bird strike shortly before landing. The Hawaiian Airlines jet landed safely, but Doron told FOX40 that a bird was ingested into the number two engine.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, Sacramento International averages more bird verses plane collisions every year than any other West Coast Airport. Between 1990 and 2007, approximately 1,300 collisions were reported.

The airport uses techniques such as loud noises and distress calls to scare birds away from runways.

Source: Bad day to be a bird in California

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