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To: Melian

Powerlines are the great harvester of helicopters. Doing that powerline maintenance is challenging flying (and outside the chance of getting killed, boring) and obviously dangerous.


1,600 posted on 06/03/2020 8:38:43 AM PDT by xone
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To: xone
Powerlines are the great harvester of helicopters. Doing that powerline maintenance is challenging flying (and outside the chance of getting killed, boring) and obviously dangerous.

It's routine for utilities to use helicopters to fly and inspect power lines, especially out away from cities. They fly the one that goes across one end of my yard, on a regular basis. Once or twice a year.

They did a double-take a couple of years ago when a wind storm had taken down multiple trees in the woods behind me, and had one tree fall into the right-of-way of the transmission line. It did not contact the wires, which is a credit to having a required 150 foot wide clearance of trees where the line passes through.

They are starting to use drones to fly the lines, collecting video inspections rather than having manned aircraft doing so. I expect that trend to continue.

1,605 posted on 06/03/2020 8:51:40 AM PDT by meyer (WWG1WGA, MAGA! Derps vs. Patriots, choose your side.)
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To: xone

Would you know if it is routine to have 3 people in a helicopter that is doing that kind of maintenance?


1,660 posted on 06/03/2020 10:32:13 AM PDT by Melian ( Check yourself before you KeK yourself. ~ Melian)
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