15.37.00
Many thousands of birds die every year in collision with airplanes and they cause some one billion US dollars of damage. You don't want a stupid seagull flying in a jet engine during takeoff or landing, it will ruin your day.
Some airfields have teams of living falcons chasing the birds away, but now there is a much more effective solution with some help of 3d printing.
These 3d printed flying predators are developed by Dutch company "Clear Flight Solutions" and come in two models: Peregrine Falcon and bigger Bold Eagle. They are made from foam material in the wings and bodies made of 3D printed nylon stretched over glass fiber composites. They fly powered with small electric motor which moves the wings and can reach speeds up to 80 kilometers an hour.
Beside airports they can also protect crops and garbage sites by scaring living feathered vermin.
http://clearflightsolutions.com/
Detailed article:
http://www.audubonmagazine.org/articles/birds/robotic-raptors-rescue
