PDG Power Line Inspection - Aberdeenshire today?
 

Having joined SWEB (now WPD) 50 years ago and flown the power lines for them for 5 years I was intrigued by the PDG AS350 that was inspecting a short section of 275kv line NW of Drumlithie, Aberdeenshire, yesterday and it's also here at the moment. It was transiting at only 2-4 kts at about 200ft and at one point landed and shut down in the next field to one of mine. If they are on PPRuNe perhaps they could enlighten me as to the task - purely to satisfy my inquiring mind as I can't work it out. I hasten to add I have no problem with the operation - it's just curiosity about the very slow patrol speed over a very short section of line.

If you see this guys, and are coming back tomorrow, this time land in my adjacent level grass field immediately due north of where you landed today and next to the house - tea and biccies await! The field was recently cut so be aware of that.

We've chewed the same dirt then - also ex-wpd....

I did it with a PDG 355 too some years ago. I believe that the inspections are by IR image these days and not just visual so slow speed with height would seems sensible.

Slow speed yes, but this was only just out of a hover. He did have a camera fitted. Anyway, it seems they must have been looking for a suspected fault in a short length of line as engineers brought in a cherry picker which was was extended mid span where the helicopter had previously landed but it was retracted almost straight away. The wind here is gusting 25kts so probably near its limits.

How different from the days 45 years or so ago when we experimented with IR line surveys. The equipment was huge and the camera had to have liquid nitrogen poured into it before take off......