Schiphol Amsterdam employs 2,324 staff, including 179 air traffic controllers, but pig farmer is a very new hire for Europe's busiest airport. Yet this new position has an important role to play for aircraft safety.
Josse Haarhuis and his head of 20 swine have been given free rein between the twin runways of the international airport. The six-week experiment is thought to be the first of its kind in an attempt to reduce the risk of bird strikes.
The 26.7 square km airport is the third-largest by area, and due to its place in the low wetlands is a haven for geese.
There are already 20 bird controllers employed at the airport, to keep the airspace in front of passenger jets clear. However, around this time of the year, the birds flock to feed on waste crops and sugar beet which are left in the fields.
![Pig sty of the skies: The 20 animals have been brought in to control geese at Amsterdam airport. Photo / Schiphol Airport](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/HQCMRR4WJDAI6BFPU6VCTBMX54.jpg?auth=fb7bd5ae740d01ff9a2866406ab07a81a24d4ea8c0b9ec518b33c2e3ba53665b&width=16&height=12&quality=70&smart=true)