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Re:Why we can't stop birds downing aircraft by mattmaroon on Friday January 16, 2009 @02:43PM (#437153)
I don't think the problem are flocks of large geese living in the area, it's them migrating through. Hawks probably couldn't solve that problem, and if you have any ideas as to how to keep Canada Geese away, you should consider doing it as a startup. They're a common pest in my area of the country.
Re:Why we can't stop birds downing aircraft by biohacker42 on Friday January 16, 2009 @02:57PM (#437174)
That's actually a good idea.

I bet even migrating flocks would scatter if a raptor buzzes them.

So perhaps I should get into falconry and charge airports to have my falcon fly through any migrating flocks.

It would be almost like being a super villain.

Re:Why we can't stop birds downing aircraft by mattmaroon on Friday January 16, 2009 @06:20PM (#437456)
I don't know. They might just keep flying. What does a flock do when a predator comes and snags one?

Also, if they're in a flock you can probably avoid them more easily than if they scatter.

Keeping raptors around permanently would be problematic. For one, they're probably just as rough on an engine. And for another, how do you feed them for the other 11 months of the year? And do they even eat birds that big?

Re:Why we can't stop birds downing aircraft by forgottenpswrd on Saturday January 17, 2009 @06:40PM (#438753)
How about fireworks?

A firework gun that can set at what altitude the fireworks go off and then launch them.

Re:Why we can't stop birds downing aircraft by mindviews on Friday January 16, 2009 @04:18PM (#437285)
I know of some folks in NYC who do this for a living - they use trained dogs to scare flocks of geese away from parks, courtyards, etc. Mostly for "aesthetic" reasons (read: geese poop a lot). I'm not sure how long the geese stay away after, though. In any event, it's full time work and they get to play with dogs all day. Not bad, eh?
Re:Why we can't stop birds downing aircraft by dag on Friday January 16, 2009 @06:59PM (#437513)
Big money there, definitely. They're a common pest in every area I've been in Canada.