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2 soldiers injured after radio aerial touches overhead cables


lowfat

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Back in the Seventies on one of the big NATO exercises a US tank units was crossing the rail lines - railway company was supposed to have cut power to the overhead catenary - and hadn't First tank over had its aerials touch the catenary lines and somehow grounded out frying the crew. I thought it was meant to be impossible to happen - I was wrong.

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The antenna doesn't have to touch the cable for there to be at risk.

 

A few years ago I was at show with a Pig with a single whip antenna & was parked with other vehicles under some high voltage cables. I was woken in the morning by the sound of hissing, which I thought was from a punctured can of beer. Tracing the source of the noise I found it to be coming from the antenna feed with a one inch spark jumping to the chassis.

 

I most certainly didn't want to step out of the Pig, but drove it away from the power lines. I then alerted all the owners of vehicles under those power lines, giving priority to those with a whip antenna. The reaction was disappointing, nobody took the slightest notice & stated they were not moving for anyone & they were there first. I assume they thought I wanted to pinch their parking spot. :banghead:

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