Airport Check-in: Florida passes bill to help get animals off of runways

Orlando: The Florida Legislature passed a bill Friday that would give airport operators more leeway to shoo wildlife off runways. It grants airports immunity from state and local penalties when they accidentally kill or injure endangered animals while managing wildlife hazards. Airports use a variety of tools to shoo away birds, including air horns, sound cannons, dogs and paint balls.

The bill will be sent to the governor's office for his signature. "I think all the signs are that he supports it," says Larry Dale, CEO of Orlando Sanford International Airport. Julie Wraithmell of Audubon of Florida told the Orlando Sentinel that it'd be difficult to determine intent when animals are killed by airport employees. But the bill specifies that airport managers aren't immune from liability if they are found to be negligent, she says.

The bill was introduced by a state representative earlier this year after a US Airways flight landed on the Hudson River after bird strikes. The Federal Aviation Administration released new data last week that revealed that collisions between birds and aircraft have occurred at nearly all large domestic airports.