Commander's perspective: BASH Cannons

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Andy DeLello
  • Commander, 374th OSS
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan --  It doesn't take long to become familiar with the sights and sounds of daily operations at the "Best Wing in the Pacific", so when 22 loud "booms" in a row are heard, it certainly grabs everyone's attention. Despite the loud and occasionally startling sounds, there is no reason to fret because the only thing these loud booms are designed to scare is the local bird population.

The hazard of wildlife strikes has existed from the moment mankind began sharing the sky with birds. While it may seem that a bird is no match for a 150,000 pound aircraft traveling at hundreds of miles per hour, the reality is, wildlife strikes create one of the greatest overall safety hazards in aviation.

In fact, since 1985 bird and wildlife strikes alone have cost the Air Force nearly one billion dollars in damage and related costs from the roughly 3,000 strikes per year. At Yokota, we incurred more than 400,000 in damage during FY 13. In light of these alarming numbers, your wing's leadership made the decision to make sure our airfield, aviators, aircraft and residents are protected by some of the best wildlife-deterrent capabilities that the industry has to offer.

Out with the old and in with the new: roughly two weeks ago marked the completion of Yokota's new Bird/Wildlife Aircraft Strike Hazard system installation. With an increase from seven to 22 louder and more robust BASH cannon systems strategically placed around the airfield, Yokota's runway complex is significantly more protected from wildlife strikes.

According to A1C Hung Ly from Airfield Management Operations, "when the cannons go off, the birds fly away and stay away", which is a vast improvement from the previous system where birds could occasionally be spotted perching on the barrels of the cannons themselves!

The cannons are remotely controlled from AMO to discharge a rapid high pressure volume of gas to create the loud boom, however nothing is actually being discharged from the cannon other than the gas--so no need to take cover (unless you're a bird). Generally, the cannons will be fired in a series, which takes roughly 5 minutes from start to finish, however they can also be activated individually.

Normally, BASH cannons will not be fired at night or during quiet hours, but expect to hear the action kick-off early in the morning when birds are scouring the airfield looking for food. With mid-afternoon flying, AMO will also fire the cannons preemptively to prevent roosting and ensure a safe departure for our formation flights. On some occasions, the cannons will be fired at random when there is no airfield or bird activity. This is an effort to keep birds from becoming accustomed to the sound of the cannons and presence of aircraft (Pavlov's Dogs).

The last feature of our new cannons that Yokota residents will need to know about is the recorded wild animal distress noises. Yes, the cannons can make animals noises too, this is just another tactic to chase the critters away and keep the airfield safe.

While this new addition to the airfield may take a little getting used to, this measure is designed to keep Yokota safe and ready to launch and recover combat airpower as we share the sky with our feathered counterparts.


Lt. Col. Andy DeLello
Commander, 374th OSS