Joined:
Dec 2024
Posts:
802
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ON, CAN
Posted: 7/23/2025 6:49:57 PM EDT
| Hit a bee at 15600’ today. Didn’t know they flew that high. Only +1 SAT outside too. |
| 1978, FL310, T39 Saberliner over Iowa. The USAF brought out a bug specialist and he said it was two bumble bees fighting. He knew they flew high trying to kill each other, but knew of none that had been recorded over 20,000’. |
Dave Funk
Past President and now a Board of Directors member Iowa Firearms Coalition.
Past President and now a Board of Directors member Iowa Firearms Coalition.
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I've flown through bug swarms up in the high teens, low 20's that got caught in strong summer updrafts. Craziest I ever heard was a fellow pilot at my previous airline that had a snake strike. Yep, had a snake hit the windscreen while on a visual approach. The only explanation I have is some sort of hawk had snatched it up, flow up high and dropped it for some reason. |
 I'm not an aviator but I've wondered about this a few times. For those of you who've hit bugs (or birds) at such altitudes, how do you think it happened? Was there strong convective activity in the area? 15 - 20K seems crazy to me! I'd love to see a buzzard wearing an oxygen mask. 
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Originally Posted By Dr_Nimslow: I've hit a few up in the 20's. Not long ago I hit a bird, around 5500'. The really bizarre part was it was dark, and we were IMC at the time. About 12 years ago, I was solid IMC on a LIFR day. I was assigned 5,000 which was about 4600 AGL. It was about 0800L but rainy, bumpy, darker than 0800 should be and fairly miserable for a Bell JetRanger (Army TH-67). Suddenly, I saw the large dark mass of a Canadian Goose whizz by about 36" left of my skull. That scared the shit out of me. Almost literally. |
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Originally Posted By TN-MadDog: Years ago I was working a Dash 8 that was descending into Chattanooga. They hit a goose at about 10,500. At night. I'm not sure how they knew it was a goose but that is what they reported. Hit right below my left side windscreen. I'll never forget it was almost pure white with speckled black feathers. That's from a view time of micro seconds. |
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In my cessna 182 I have hit bugs at 7000 feet and regularly at altitudes <4000 feet. I was surprised how high-flying insects can be. Never hit a bird, but have encountered them at all altitudes. I have nearly hit a few. One literally looked back over its wing at me approaching only a few dozen feet behind it and quickly got out of the way. I swear I saw a 'holy shit!' expression on its face before he turned. Maybe just my own reflection in the windscreen. 
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