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'Raptor Force,' airing Sunday on PBS' 'Nature' |
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Written by Jean Prescott, McClatchy-Tribune
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Friday, 16 February 2007 |
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Fascination with flight, every sort of flight, from helicopters and jets to parasails and gliders, should be all it takes to lure viewers to "Raptor Force," the latest from "Nature" on PBS (Sunday night; check local listings for time).
Owls, hawks, eagles and falcons give us bird's-eye views of remarkable kills thanks to innovative new technology. Viewers even become part of the spectacular corkscrew dive of the peregrine falcon, a maneuver called the "stoop," in which the falcon climbs to well above 1,000 feet, rolls over - back down, belly up - like one of the Blue Angels and dives toward its prey which also is in flight. The prey bird never sees it coming.
Much of the footage is thanks in large measure to Rob MacIntyre.
After a few false starts, we reach him by phone, and all he can do was laugh at the question, "What's your day job?" "I get that a lot," he says. "It's the most bizarre thing you'll ever hear. I'm not classically educated. I was a mechanic in a plant with the first electronically controlled conveyor, and when it broke down, we had no one to fix it. Millions were at stake, and the plant was going to have to shut down," so MacIntyre began to tinker, and the rest is well, you know.
"I was the guy who went home covered with grease, the lowest man on the totem pole," says MacIntyre, "but I kept my eyes open and learned something about electronics," and before you could say 3-ounce TV transmitter, he was working in the engineering department at 3M.
MacIntyre actually built the tiny camera, battery pack and transmitter - less than 3 ounces, total weight - used to get the footage that makes "Raptor Force" so spectacular. A tiny harness keeps the equipment in place, and even carrying extra weight, the birds compensate quickly.
"Here's what I like about the film," MacIntyre says. "You will learn something. What will you learn? You will learn how individual feathers function during flight," working like tiny rudders and ailerons to adjust flight patterns. "I plan to shoot more video footage and send it out to Langley (Air Force Base) so those guys can see."
Indeed, "Raptor Force" strikes comparisons between raptors and any number of innovative aircraft, comparing, for example, a great gray owl's soundless flight to that of a Stealth bomber or the F/A-22 jets, nicknamed Raptors, to the maneuverability of a peregrine falcon.
"A peregrine the size of that plane would beat it in a dogfight every time," MacIntyre declares.
Despite his promise to shoot more footage for the military, the man is a restless sort.
"I have five things going on my workbench at one time, and I'm passionate about something that's different, but once I've done it ..." The voice trails off. "I like it when someone comes to me and says, 'Can you build me a camera we can mount on a bird's back?' or 'Can you build me a walking, talking turkey?' Those are the jobs I love." | Only registered users can write comments.
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