Bird experts: Mass migration poses ‘scary’ flight safety risk at Ben Gurion Airport

With the biannual migration of birds across Israel underway, experts are warning that commercial flights in and out of Ben Gurion Airport are at risk of striking birds and sustaining damage, presenting a serious safety risk for passengers. Sitting on the crossroads between Africa and Eurasia, the Jewish state’s narrow airspace is crossed by 500m birds twice a year, in one of the largest global migrations on earth. With airports finally overcoming a summer of flight delays, overcrowding and lost luggage, Jewish National Fund experts are warning that the mass migration poses a security risk to travelers, urging aviation authorities to alter flight paths for the months of September and October. Yitzchak Raz, the former chief investigator for aviation accidents, told Channel 12 news that “when a plane arrives with speed and impacts [birds], even the smallest damage is enough to splinter the metal from the blades and enter the engine. These can cause shredding in the engine and even engine failure.” <br/>