Collisions between birds and aircraft could be avoided by constructing sonic nets around airfields, a study says.
The nets emit noise which has been shown to reduce the number of birds in an area by 80%.
Installing the speakers around an airfield - where the majority of collisions tend to take place - could reduce the chance of accidents.
The nets create low-level sound which disrupts bird communication - and could be more effective than current bird control measures, such as shooting and poisoning.
Professor John Swaddle said bird strikes cost the aviation industry worldwide billions of pounds each year, and were responsible for 255 deaths between 1988 and 2013.
His team at the University of Exeter says emitting 24-hour noise around an airfield is a benign and relatively cost effective solution to the problem.
In tests, the team set up speakers and amplifiers in three areas of an airfield in Virginia, US.
They observed bird abundance over an eight-week period - the first four weeks without noise and the second four weeks with the noise turned on.
The technique showed a large decrease in the number of birds, particularly the species that were at high risk of bird strike such as starlings.
Prof Swaddle said: "We have conducted prior research in an aviary but this is the first study done out in the field to show the efficacy of the sonic net.
"We are using a different kind of deterrent - trying to stop birds from hearing one another by playing a noise that is at the same pitch as the alarm calls or predator noises they are listening out for.
"By playing a noise at the same pitch, we mask those sounds, making the area much riskier for the birds to occupy.
"The birds don't like it and leave the area around the airfields, where there is potential for tremendous damage and loss of life."
The paper, A Sonic Net Excludes Birds From An Airfield: Implications For Reducing Bird Strike And Crop Losses, is published in the journal Ecological Applications.
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