Since the "Miracle on the Hudson" two years ago, we've grown increasingly wary of birds, whether they're loitering in Central Park, hanging out in Fairway, or just dropping from the sky ominously. Now we have a new reason to be anxious around our winged skymasters: birds are more likely than ever to attack airplanes.
According to USA Today, they are 40 percent angrier than in the last decade: "The number of severe bird strikes suffered by airline flights above 500 feet reached a new high of 150 in 2009, the federal data show. That represents a 40% increase in the rate of bird strikes compared with the average from 2000 through 2008. The trend continued last year, which was on a nearly identical pace of serious strikes through November." According to The Awl, who have started their own grassroots "War Against Birds" campaign, there have been 108,000 bird attacks on planes on record since 1990; there have been 31 plane hijackings globally since that time.
But cui bono? Who is benefitting from this uptick in bird rage? Finland. Or more specifically, Rovio Mobile, the Finnish company who created the game "Angry Birds"—it was announced today just raised $42 million in financing, all thanks to their addictive flagship game. That's a lot of bird feed.
