Karle Newman from Pesky several times a week “cleans” the Hradec airport from hares, starlings and pigeons. Besides the eagle and the quail, dogs help him. The Predator in Air is a warning signal for other animals. Since 2008, he wear a safety vest has been driving dogs, eagles, hatcheries and other predators a couple of times a week, and cleaned the grounds of starling, pigeons, hares and other uninvited guests whose collision with the plane could end up a disaster.
By delivery, we enter the approaching runway when a helicopter is just off the ground and the light motorized aircraft cross the sky. There are two Breton hounds in the backseats impatiently. We hang hangars and Karle closely monitors the surrounding area. “I have to go through all the areas to see where it moves. Here are hidden horns and hares that could enter the track, “he explains. If he notices an uninvited visitor, he must alert staff to the control tower. After each “walk”, he writes a detailed report.
In the western part of the airport, about 30 meters from the runway, the car stops. At first glance, there is peace, except for a few swallows hanging from the ground; there are no fowls in the sky that could pose danger to pilots.
“The worst is always after the mowing, when the grasses fly into big birds and collect insects,” says Newman. The main enemies are starlings, pigeons, raccoons, there are also herons, storks or mugs.
Plot is not an obstacle for hares
Karle Newman opens the car door and drives a pair of Brittany hounds. Like a biological protection worker, they also wear yellow reflective vests. The “search” – Voice command is a clear sign for a 7-month-old female and a thirteen-year-old dog.
They begin systematically combing the strip of grass between the fence and the start-up runways. As soon as they are a few meters behind, the handler is summoned by a piercing whistle into a wooden whistle. After a few minutes, the wizards attribute their first success. They look for the hare, who immediately gives a furious run.
While an experienced dog returns to the master after completing the task, the young female hits the hare several tens of meters until it falls out of sight. After a while, however, he returns and continues to work. They are exercises to expel hares, not to hunt them.
Although the airport is surrounded by a fence, there is no problem for hares to get inside. When they overrun the area, the hunters in reflective clothing organize a classic hunt or capture. They will not move for 10 minutes, and the hounds drive out another hare who has settled in the low grass.