Insects can execute flying feats more impressive than fighter jets, and a team of researchers has now learned the trick behind one of them. They used high speed video cameras and a new 3D reconstruction technique to show how fruit flies execute their acrobatic turns. As they report in the 9 April Physical Review Letters, despite the complex wing motions, a fly can execute quick pirouettes by adjusting just a single parameter that controls the difference between the way its left and right wings oscillate. The results may be relevant for engineers designing flight control strategies for tiny robotic insects for search-and-rescue and surveillance.
Nicolas Weiss on 12 Aug 09The guy is studying Aeronautics in Delft and has been working on his flying bike since he was 16. He manage to fly 1.5 m high and 10 m long! A bit higher and the bike helm is not going to be of so much help!
