In-flight live-wire maintenance in Wuhan

An MD-500 helicopter hovers near an ultrahigh 500-kilovolt live wire, as an engineer, buckled up to a safety belt, conducts a power line overhaul in Caidian District of Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei province, April 12, 2010. The one-minute in-flight operation on a live wire -- a stunning feat previously reigned by the US, Canada, Australia and Israel -- marks a quantum leap in China's electric power overhaul technology. The live-wire maintenance, to ensure uninterrupted power transmission, helps save electricity worth 2.5 million yuan per hour, Xinhua reported. [Photo/Xinhua]