> > Last I heard aircraft certification required windshields be 
> tested to 
> > not break with a four pound bird strike at cruise speed.
> > 
> > That may not be true because the rest of the story claimed that a 
> > company suddenly could not pass the test. It turned out that the 
> > Quality Control folks reduced their expenses by switching 
> to frozen chickens for the test.
> > Returning to fresh chickens resolved the problem.
> 
>
> Mythbusters did an episode on that.  They screwed up the test 
> in the end, but frozen birds indeed do far more damage at 
> least at any speed a plane would be going.  If it gets fast 
> enough, say the speed of a meteor intersecting our orbit it 
> suddenly stops mattering what it's made of.  
> Dust, pebbles or a solid chunk all will give you an equally 
> bad day. :-)


They did that one twice.  After the first test they were eventually informed
that the windscreens they were using weren't rated for bird strikes.

Tony

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