PILOT BRIEFING HELICOPTER SYSTEMS CAN HEAR POWER LINES THE MACHINE GUN-LIKE STACCATO PULSES in the pilot's headset grew more intense and accelerated the closer the Bell 206 turbine helicopter came to power lines along Orlando's Interstate 4. Pilot Andrew Hayden of AirOcean Aviation in Yalesville, Connecticut, was hired by Safe Flight to provide demonstrations of the system prior to the National Business Aviation Association convention. The helicopter landing site is used for tourist helicopter scenic flights near the Orlando convention center. The landing capped a demonstration flying 500 feet above powerlines between Orlando and Kissimmee. Hayden demonstrated that when power lines are backlit by the sun, they seem to disappear. Helicopter pilots normally have only four or five seconds to react to the sight of power lines in the flight path, but the system gives aural warning eight seconds before reaching the lines. While the system has been offered for years, it was recently upgraded to include both 50 Hz (international) and 60 Hz (United States) capabilities in one digital processing system. The entire system adds only a pound to the weight of the helicopter, and includes a display with a sensitivity control and a button that provides a warning light. By pushing that button the pilot can silence the warning. The system is called the Dual Frequency Powerline Detection System. It is approved for a dozen helicopter models and will soon be approved for the Bell 429. As we approached the landing site, I had mentioned to Hayden that I couldn't see the power lines along the busy interstate. "But we can hear them," he answered. -AKM 44 | AOPA PILOT January 2015http://www.sandia.aero http://www.sandia.aero http://www.aerospacereports.com