Uncover the cause of the plane landing in the river

US scientists have identified a feather in the US Airways aircraft engine landing in the Hudson River on January 15 is the migratory geese. This finding has important implications for preventing similar accidents in the future.

Passengers flanked the wings waiting for rescue, while US Airways Airbus A320 sank into the Hudson River.Photo: Reuters.

The US Airways Airbus A320 from LaGuardia airport crashed into a flock of sky geese, causing both engines to fail when the aircraft left the airport about 8 km. The captain decided to give an emergency landing plane to the Hudson River and this miraculous response saved all 155 people on board.

Investigators of the National Transportation Safety Agency found the hair left in the aircraft engine. They sent them to the Smithsonian Institution in Washington for analysis. Here, experts at the Feather Identification Laboratory use molecular techniques and hair samples from the American National Museum of Natural History to determine that the feathers in the aircraft engine are of Canadian sky goose (scientific name Branta canadensis).

Canadian sky goose related to the accident is one of the largest birds in North America and each weighs an average of over 3 kg. The next step is to find out whether geese related to accidents are immigration or local. "Determining whether or not they are migratory species is very important for our research and will help to introduce measures to reduce aircraft collisions with future birds and birds , " said Peter Marra scientist. at the Smithsonian Institute's Migrant Bird Center said.

Peter Marra is also the lead author of a report by a group of experts involved in the investigation of the emergency landing aircraft and published the discovery in the scientific journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, the June 15 issue. He added: "Local birds that live near the airport can be managed by reducing numbers, changing habitats or chasing them. But with migratory birds it requires skills. more complex coping techniques to monitor their activities ".

To clarify the feathers in the engine engine of migratory birds or local birds, the Smithsonian Institute scientists use analytical technology at the molecular level in the laboratory. This method can result in geographic signs such as the type of bird food used when it grows new hair. They then used a spectrophotometer to compare the feathers in the plane with the pattern of immigrant Canadian geese and geese that often live near LaGuardia airport. Detailed analysis of the results: feathers in an airplane engine migrating Canadian geese.

The director of the Smithsonian Institute's Feather Identification Laboratory, Carla Dove, commented: "This important finding not only identifies birds involved in accidents but also helps understand the role of migratory birds. More The information we find in such cases can add the ability to reduce the risk of birds crashing into planes in the future. "