1. POWER LINES AND THE AUDICIOUS MACHINE “THE HELICOPTER”
“The helicopter approaches closer than any other vehicle to fulfilment of mankind's
ancient dreams of the flying horse and the magic carpet.”- Igor Sikorsky
One of the prime challenge that The Power sector faces is the Power transmission
through the inhospitable mountainous terrain of our country. The mountainous hilly
regions in the Himalayan belt extending from Jammu & Kashmir in North to the seven
sister states in the east suffers from the general impediments of difficult terrain, poor
accessibility, poor transportation and poor communication facilities. The Concept to
Commission and further Maintaining these power lines can be technically and logistically
be supported by these audacious machines - the helicopters. The insert in the quote by
Igor Sikorsky may humbly be made by the author to be read as flying WORK horses.
The bird’s eye view from a static precision hovering platform of a helicopter suitably
aided by the global positioning systems and high resolution gyro stabilised and
underbelly mounted cameras is the absolute tool for reconnaissance and planning the
power lines.
The foundation work for the commissioning of pylon is assisted by winching down of a
lean mean team of trained personnel along with light jungle clearing and earth moving
equipment to prepare sites for foundation. The reinforcing steel structure is then moved
by helicopters and is precision placed into the foundation sites by helicopter underslung
operations. Wet ready mix concrete may then be aerial delivered with precision release
into these foundation pits.
The Pylon positioning is the next task for the helicopters. Depending on the type, size
and the underslung weight lifting capability of the helicopter, a preassembled pylon may
be flown underslung to the site, or the pylon is lifted and assembled modularly from the
base upwards. Typically the steel tubular and wooden pylons are lifted preassembled and
the lattice steel pylons are broken down in helicopter lift loads.
Wire stringing operations are the next task for these flying machines after the
Poles/pylons are in place. Helicopter mounted wire stringers have been developed and
refined over 30 years of operation, and are now amongst the most efficient means
available that can string wires very quickly even if there is a large amount of cable to be
strung especially over inhospitable terrains.
The time and resource saving to establish the power line grid by helicopter and the fact
that it negates the construction of access roads and heavy vehicles, especially in
environmentally sensitive regions and mountainous terrain, makes helicopter truly a
work horse . The role of the helicopter after commissioning of the power lines is far from
over. The survey and maintenance of these power lines is equally challenging, resource
intensive and time consuming. The helicopters with suitable equipment on board is a
very versatile system to carry out testing, preventive maintenance and repairs of Power
line . Some of these are:
Helicopter platform joint testing - Bare hand hot stick live-line joint testing, the
linesman is seated on the skid mounted heli-platform. Joint testing may also be
accomplished by human-under-slung method.
Helicopter platform earth-wire OPGW inspection -The linesman is seated on a
suitable heli-platform to inspect earth-wire/ optical ground wire cable (OPGW).

2. Human under-slung insulator testing -Human-under-slung insulator testing provides
quick access to insulators.
Human under-slung hardware inspection - Hardware or component inspection on
towers, conductors or OPGW is easily accomplished by human-under-slung method.
Human under-slung live-line joint testing - Live-line joint testing by human-under-
slung is an expeditious method to accomplish the task. Joint testing can also be
accomplished from the heli-platform.
Human under-slung tree clearance inspection
Thermography infrared aerial inspection - FLIR thermography infrared is an
effective tool for hot-spot inspection. FLIR fault inspection is an important tool to prevent
inadvertent electrical shutdowns on the network. The inspection can be done at < 100
km/ hour which saves time and creates more efficiency in the prevention of faults.
Global positioning data and information capture is down-loaded for assessment.
Corona bi-spectral UV photography aerial inspection -Corona bi-spectral UV
photography inspection is an effective fault preventative tool. Corona discharge is
captured around the fault area and is a useful method when air-temperatures are high.
Global positioning data and capture is downloaded for assessment.
LIDAR 3D laser aerial mapping-The 3D light detection and ranging system allows the
measurement from the air of vertical laser beams to give data of existing or potential
problems relating to conductors, clearances and vegetation.
The Helicopters have been an indispensible tool in the Power transmission sector in
Europe, USA, Australia, Africa and even in NewZealand . A miniscule helicopter effort has
also been applied in India for power line cleaning and inspection. There is however a
tremendous opportunity to utilise these wonder flying machines through the lifecycle of
the power grid in the country.

4. AUTHOR- SANJEEV CHOUDHARY
Sanjeev is a helicopter professional and has worked with leading Indian
and International General Aviation helicopter companies