FAA proposes to withhold bird strike records

The Federal Aviation Administration is proposing to seal from public view records of airplane bird strikes, according to a USA Today report.

The FAA explained its plan to withhold wildlife collision records, despite promising the Associated Press earlier this year that the data would be forthcoming, by saying the public could get an "inaccurate perception" of airplane safety from the report, USA Today and the AP said. Also, the Administration worried airports might not be as willing to report such incidents in the first place.

Recent statistics the FAA has released show an increase in collisions; although no one was hurt in January when a bird strike brought a passenger plane down to the Hudson River, the incident brought new scrutiny to birds and airplane safety.