SEOUL & SUWON/ MUAN, Dec. 29 (Korea Bizwire) — Following a bird strike incident involving Jeju Air at Muan International Airport on December 29, 2024, experts are calling for comprehensive measures to mitigate such hazards, a leading cause of aviation safety concerns globally.
Bird strikes, collisions between birds and aircraft, are common near airports due to overlapping ideal conditions for both aviation and bird habitats. Muan International Airport, located near key migratory bird sites, exemplifies this challenge.
According to a strategic environmental impact assessment conducted in 2020, the airport’s surrounding areas—such as the Hyeongyeong-myeon and Unnam-myeon regions, coastal zones in Muan and Mokpo, and the Muan Reservoir—are home to significant migratory bird populations.
Recent surveys identified tens of thousands of birds, including 12,779 at Hyeongyeong-myeon and Unnam-myeon alone.
Muan is not unique in this regard. South Korea’s major airports, including Incheon, Gimpo, and Gimhae, are also situated near migratory bird routes, a recurring issue highlighted in environmental assessments for planned facilities like Jeju’s second airport and Heuksando Airport.
Bird strikes remain a persistent problem across the nation. From 2019 to the first half of 2024, South Korea recorded 623 bird strike incidents. While incidents briefly declined during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, they have since risen steadily, with 152 reported in 2023.
Experts attribute this increase to factors such as urban development disrupting bird migration paths and climate change encouraging migratory birds to settle as residents.
Professor Lee Geun-young of Korea National University of Transportation emphasized that no airport is immune to bird strikes, noting, “Muan International Airport is not particularly more vulnerable than others.”
Similarly, Hanyang University’s Professor Cho Jin-soo remarked that while proximity to migratory sites heightens risks, such factors alone cannot definitively link bird strikes to specific accidents.
The Korean Environmental Institute’s report underlines the need for robust bird-strike prevention strategies, citing data showing 99% of global bird strikes occur within 13 kilometers of airports and at altitudes below 2,000 feet.
As South Korea’s air traffic resumes its pre-pandemic levels, implementing effective countermeasures to address these risks is increasingly urgent.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)