Indian Army Using Chinese Cameras to Spy on China
The Indian Army recently demonstrated a new drone-hunting capability involving high-resolution cameras and a well-trained black kite.
The new capability, which is meant to bolster the country’s surveillance along its border with China, was unveiled during a US-India bilateral military exercise.
The black kite is mounted with a spy camera on its head to detect and neutralize Chinese drones.
However, information obtained by EurAsian Times revealed that the spy cameras used to detect Chinese-made drones are manufactured in China.
#WATCH | A Kite trained by the Indian Army to prey on drones displayed in action at the ongoing Indo-US wargame Yudhabhyas in Auli, Uttarakhand pic.twitter.com/Bjha3gKaNS
— ANI (@ANI) November 29, 2022
A close-up photo of the trained bird showed the logo of the camera’s developer, “FX.”
The company is reportedly based in Shenzhen and specializes in wireless backup camera systems.
“The FX798T Micro FPV Camera and 5.8GHz 40CH 25mW VTX is extremely small and could be installed on almost anything. The unit is ultra-lightweight, so it is easy to place on any aircraft without affecting the center of gravity,” information on an e-commerce website stated.
Training Kites as Anti-Drone Systems
Indian Army spokesman Colonel Sudhir Chamoli explained that the project to train kites as anti-drone systems started in 2020.
It is part of an innovative measure to address increasing drone threats from enemies.
Trained by the Remount Veterinary Corps Center, the bird can perform basic surveillance roles such as relaying images of enemy territories.
It has a GPS tracker tied to its body and works in consonance with a military dog that hears enemies and alerts handlers.
Once a drone is located, the kite uses its sharp claws to bring it down.
It’s a plane, no it’s a bird 🦅 !!
Indian Army's drone predator kite 'Arjun' 🦅🇮🇳
Army’s training eagles & falcons to swoop down on hostile drones. pic.twitter.com/TH4SCdcQYn
— Ashwini Shrivastava (@AshwiniSahaya) November 30, 2022
