In the run-up to the tenth anniversary of the ‘Miracle on the Hudson’, Smithsonian Channel has commissioned Arrow Media to investigate the dangers of bird strikes and the hidden world of ground-breaking science designed to help prevent them in Bird vs Plane: Miracle on the Hudson (1 x 60 mins).
Every year, bird strikes cause over $700 million worth of damage to aircraft, and in the past 20 years they have killed more than 130 people. This special documentary gains access to the world-famous Smithsonian Feather Identification lab, which investigated the bird strike on Chesley Sullenberger’s plane, which ditched into the Hudson River, and now handles around 9,000 bird strikes annually. The film reveals how engineers use the data and knowledge of the culprit species to build new engines, to assist airport biologists adapt their airfields, and to aid scientists design cutting edge devices to keep the species away from planes. It is Exec Produced by Ash Potterton.