Flock of birdlike drones on mission to spy across China
The program, code-named ‘Dove’, makes use of hi-tech drones that look and move like real birds
The next time you look up at the sky and at a bird, it might be looking right back at you -- because China is using an advanced fleet of drones for surveillance that look just like birds.
The drones can flap their wings like a bird to fly climb, dive and turn in the air, replicating about 90% of the movements of a real dove, according to a member of the program.
Each dove drone has a wingspan of about 20 inches, weighs around 200 grams and is capable of flying at speeds of up to 25 miles per hour for a maximum of 30 minutes. They're said to be so quiet that they've flown among real birds without attracting attention.
Each dove -- uh, drone -- is packed with all the things you'd expect from a surveillance device, like an HD camera, GPS, and satellite communication.
