What’s Up with Transmission Lines? The cables that carry high-voltage electricity over long distances are called trans- mission lines. They require very good insulation to prevent electricity from arcing to a nearby object, like a tree or building, or to the ground. Because air is actually a good insulator, most utilities string the lines from tall towers, which typically range from 49 to 180 ft. in height. What a utility needs, then, is a tool that can carry workers and materials efficiently


over distances both vertical and horizontal. On some days, the job is to transport a crew some miles to a remote location. On others, it is to move as little as possible, holding a precise hover close to wires carrying as much as 800,000 volts while a power-line technician completes a task.


Above: For some segments of the project, Rotor Blade was able to keep its helicopters hangared at the Belen Regional Airport (KBRG), a welcome amenity not always available to aircraft working many miles from any facilities.


Right: An MD Helicopters MD 500E heads to its landing zone before the sun is up, ready for a full day of lines, line workers, and tools.


Previous spread: Darin Sturdevant, piloting a Wilson Construction MD 530F, surveys a segment of the 500 kV circuits running between Hesperia, California, and Laughlin, Nevada. Photographer Mark Bennett is just visible in the skid-mounted mirror, which also provides Sturdevant with a way to verify that the aircraft’s human external cargo line is securely attached to the belly of the aircraft.


DECEMBER 2021 ROTOR 45


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