I fly my micros in the back yard...The barn swallows hate the UMX Beast...They would attack, dogfighting with it and call to their buddies for reenforcments!!!...They didn't attack my other planes as much as they did the Beast---My thinking was that they didn't like the red paint...I "raised" several generations of barn swallows as I allow them to nest around my house...

I had one hawk attack my Beast...I saw the bird making a shallow angled dive toward the plane---Just before he got to the plane I went to full throttle and turned into him just like your told to do in aircraft fighter school...The hawk overshot and in an instant I was on HIS six!!!...He looked back, said "Rut Row!!!" like Scoobie Doo and bugged out......

Kevin

That wasn't a Falcon or a Buzzard. It was an Osprey, or Fish Hawk, and the Ospreys around here usually leave the planes alone, there are however Falcons that'll chase them, but as soon as they see what they are will back away and follow, and occasionally a Red Tail Hawk encounter can be relied upon as well. Soon as I saw the underside of it's wings I could see it was an Osprey...

There was one instance when I was flying my P47, and this hen Falcon decided to be a "tough guy" and try to harrass my plane, so I did a loop around to come back behind the bird and scared the bejesus out of it, and the hunter became the hunted...

Sound may play a part with some birds, where a glider may be ok a powered plane may not

Originally Posted by mhills51

Don't have much of a issue with the helicopters. They have circled, I think they realize when this bird stops in the air turns on a dime and starts coming to them they quickly do the same.
Now, before you all say, "don't fly after the birds" It's not done to hurt the birds, but to save it and my helicopter. Last thing I need is puree of bird and a crashed heli.

My Budgie Kiki painfully learned when he was about 3 months old that one should never fly directly over nor try to land on the rotors of even a tiny R/C heli as it is coming to rest on the ground. He is very clever, but had to learn the almost-hard way that when I'd previously warned him to keep away from them, there was a good reason.

But he learned his lesson and will not fly dangerously close to them anymore, though he sometimes pushes the limit. When I take one of these tiny coax 4-ch helis out [which I've tuned to be reasonably fast indoors, precisely responsive and stable > my livingroom is larger and I fly them faster than shown in the video below made when I was just starting to learn how to get them flying fast, about 20KPH/13mph, which is still slower than he can fly indoors], he says, "Go, go with the helicopter" [yes, it surprised me that he can say helicopter] or "See, watch the helicopter" when that is his wiser choice. I put together a super lightweight ersatz heli from old parts w/no mechanics & few parts, so I can throw it at him or hold onto, blades autorotating as I hold it and run and chase him with to remind him of heli-danger. He really enjoys the game, and as soon as he realized it was HIS helicopter, clever creative little Kiki now calls that one "Helikiki". Nonetheless, he has also learned that the Avitron [shown in my above post] is much better, more fun and SAFER to fly around with!


L

tiny G.T. Model 4-ch 2.4G heli at birthday party (1 min 42 sec)

Ive had a turkey vulture go full bore right through the fuse/wing junction on a 100" glider before. Apparently it didnt enjoy sharing the thermal

Originally Posted by matiac

That wasn't a Falcon or a Buzzard. It was an Osprey, or Fish Hawk, and the Ospreys around here usually leave the planes alone, there are however Falcons that'll chase them, but as soon as they see what they are will back away and follow, and occasionally a Red Tail Hawk encounter can be relied upon as well. Soon as I saw the underside of it's wings I could see it was an Osprey...

This. The wing shape will tell you its an osprey. Amazing birds, but they prey on fish, not birds- kinda narrows down the reasons for the attack. You didn't have floats on the jet, did you?

I feel the pain, I maidened my 1/4 scale RV4 with the DLE 20 and all the bells yesterday. My dad was flying along with it when the right wing exploded. Well the plane went straight to its death in the woods, but the wing panel floated across a corn field. We found the carcus of the plane and under it was a dead woodpecker. We THOUGHT we may have hit it on the way down through the trees. That is untill we found the floating wing panel which contained the feathers and blood from the woodpecker. After inspecting further will was able to figure out that the bird hit the plane where the right wing attaches to the fuselage. The bird went into the fuselage and struck the regulator pretty hard as there was evidence there also. He was flying very high and never seen the woodpecker approach the plane.
Sad part for us is we only got about 4 minutes of flight on that plane and it was flying so good...

Jamie

I get red shouldered hawks flying with my planes quite a lot. They've never bothered them. I did have one stoop from out of nowhere to check out the plane, but he pulled-up well before he hit it.

The only time any wildlife interfered with my flying was when a mockingbird attacked my Blade CP Pro while I was flying in the back yard. Of course there wasn't much left of both the bird and the 'copter. It was like an aerial food processor.

Funjets use a high Kv motor and are very high pitched and loud. Maybe that had something to do with the attack or ? If it was an osprey and they are fish eating birds, was this near water that the attack happened?

I had an encounter w/ a falcon years ago while slope soaring on a small bluff during a windy stormy winter day. It was blowing about 20 mph straight in and I was having a lot of fun flying a shrike, a 56" fast and maneuverable wingeron, when out of nowhere I hear ppsssrrrrrrrrrrrr, and I see it diving at my plane, talons out! Instinctively, (read-not thinking) I dove as well, rolling and pulling up elevator here and there trying to shake him, which I couldn't, and almost wreaked while trying to do so. I calmed down a little but he was staying just a foot or two on my tail. I tried doing a split S, but as I dived he'd just tuck in his wings, and as I pulled up he spread out his wings, staying right on my tail. As I did my half roll and pulled on the elevator, he'd back off for a second, then with a flick of his wings, he dived down and got right back on me. When I tried a half cuban 8 by diving down, pulling up inverted, then doing a half roll, it threw him off for a few seconds, but he'd just flap and get right back on me. Finally he got bored and left.

Below is a cool video w/ some great FPV footage as well. The fun starts about 1:20

Alula glider - Hawk attack (8 min 7 sec)

Originally Posted by JRAllen

I feel the pain, I maidened my 1/4 scale RV4 with the DLE 20 and all the bells yesterday. My dad was flying along with it when the right wing exploded. Well the plane went straight to its death in the woods, but the wing panel floated across a corn field. We found the carcus of the plane and under it was a dead woodpecker. We THOUGHT we may have hit it on the way down through the trees. That is untill we found the floating wing panel which contained the feathers and blood from the woodpecker. After inspecting further will was able to figure out that the bird hit the plane where the right wing attaches to the fuselage. The bird went into the fuselage and struck the regulator pretty hard as there was evidence there also. He was flying very high and never seen the woodpecker approach the plane.
Sad part for us is we only got about 4 minutes of flight on that plane and it was flying so good...

Jamie

Sad part for the woodpecker is that he is dead, and no doubt the plane hit the pecker not the other way around, though obviously it was an accident since your dad never saw him.

Simple you can upset birds either due to territorial or nesting location also many birds will be attracted to gliders out of curiosity, possibly thinking it's another bird gaining altitude without flapping it's wings indicating thermal activity . Best to cut throttle and /or glide in for a land that way every one goes home in one piece.
It is annoying to see other threads on this subject with posts by flyers who see the interaction with birds as some sort of combat, contest ,dog fight or go out of their way to chase and provoke birds instead of leaving them be.

I've had/seen redtails attack gliders. In my experience, birds of prey will scram at the sight of a plane looping near them. It must really freak them out.

Buzzards will soar with gliders to the point where their numbers are a source of confusion.

We have a redtail at our field. The fella likes to inspect our planes. One of our members had a radian in the air and the hawk took off and flew up to it. we thought for sure it was going to attack it, but never did. It got right up under the radians left wing and it was like it was glued there. Went a whole lap with a hawk under wing. Then the bird went back down and landed. Coolest thing I have ever seen. Also had a club member with a foamy shaped like a bird. It drew in a golden eagle as the plane came in to land. I have never seen one outside of a zoo and I am still amaized at the wingspan of that critter. Of all the encounters at the field I've seen aggresive approaches, but never an attack. once they get real close they seem to take a minute to observe, then go on their way. Maybe they are taking pity on the poor little planes for being such awful flying birds.

Originally Posted by RyanNX211

I've had/seen redtails attack gliders. In my experience, birds of prey will scram at the sight of a plane looping near them. It must really freak them out.

Same here. I've never failed to discourage a Redtail by simply leading em into a shallow dive
followed by a loop. Once I come over the top, they scram. I've seen em do
dives and rolls to inverted, but they don't do loops and seem to see it as a sign of dominance.
It's a pretty drama-free way to end the encounter.

I've also seen em dive aggressively and then just stop right above and fly formation, sometimes
with the talons out.

ian