What Is Going On With This Helicopter?

**Justin Case** · 10-04-2010, 09:43 PM

Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

Those are not flares or artificial lighting or a Photoshop job. And it's not a teleporting sequence from a sci-fi movie either. It's the Kopps-Etchells Effect. This is how it happens, according to Command Sergeant Major Jeff Mellinger:

Story and more pics > http://gizmodo.com/5655124/what-is-g...his-helicopter

**klickitat** · 10-04-2010, 10:12 PM

To me it looks like it is in a sand storm and the magnesium in the blades is lighting up as it is being sand blasted.
Totally a guess.

**crashdive123** · 10-05-2010, 06:18 AM

The amount of static electricity built up on the rotors of a helicopter can be quite impressive. I've done a few helo transfers at sea, and we had to ground the helicopter to the hull of the submarine before the transfer could take place. The "discharge" is sometimes rather impressive.

**Rick** · 10-05-2010, 08:04 AM

Not just choppers either. The half tracks of WWII would build up a charge on them as well.

Quick story. WWII France. Sunday morning. Pop and his outfit stopped at a church in France to attend services. They left on man in the truck to guard it. He happened to be stretched out in back when he heard a noise, looked out the back of the canvas and saw an old Frenchman sabotaging the hitch on the trailer they were pulling. He began to beat the old man about the head with the butt of his rifle, which caused a huge commotion and everyone poured out of the church weapons at the ready. Seems the old man was picking up the static chain the G.I.s were dragging on the fuel trailer. No reason to tear up a perfectly good piece of chain. Fortunately, the old man was not too badly injured.

**Sarge47** · 10-05-2010, 11:53 AM

Originally Posted by crashdive123

The amount of static electricity built up on the rotors of a helicopter can be quite impressive. I've done a few helo transfers at sea, and we had to ground the helicopter to the hull of the submarine before the transfer could take place. The "discharge" is sometimes rather impressive.

A fact that was illustrated in the movie: "The Hunt For Red October;" where Alec Baldwin is being lowered down by helicopter to a waiting sub at sea.

**Sarge47** · 10-05-2010, 11:58 AM

Originally Posted by Rick

Not just choppers either. The half tracks of WWII would build up a charge on them as well.

Quick story. WWII France. Sunday morning. Pop and his outfit stopped at a church in France to attend services. They left on man in the truck to guard it. He happened to be stretched out in back when he heard a noise, looked at the back of the canvas and saw an old Frenchman sabotaging the hitch on the trailer they were pulling. He began to beat the old man about the head with the butt of his rifle, which caused a huge commotion and everyone poured out of the church weapons at the ready. Seems the old man was picking up the static chain the G.I.s were dragging on the fuel trailer. No reason to tear up a perfectly good piece of chain. Fortunately, the old man was not too badly injured.

Yeah, but what shape was the chain in?

Reminds me of that old joke where a drunk was walking down the street dragging a 20 foot length of log chain. When a police officer showed up he asked the drunk why in the world was he dragging that chain down the middle of the street? The drunk replied: "Did ya ever try to PUSH one?"

**Old GI** · 10-05-2010, 01:49 PM

Standing on top of a load to be slinged out is not the time to learn the lesson about helicopters and static electricity. I was fortunate to be taught the danger and didn't have to learn the hard, painful way. Did see a guy hit once, he didn't use the probe correctly. He wasn't static at all as it happened. OK, pun not so good.

**Rick** · 10-05-2010, 02:06 PM

For those that don't know how it's done.

Guests can not see images in the messages. Please register in the forum.

**pgvoutdoors** · 10-05-2010, 02:33 PM

As I conducted Helicopter Support duties I would see this often while in the field. It's best seen while wearing night vision goggles but if the conditions are right it can be seen with the naked eye. It's a combination of static electricity and dust or sand. The CH53E has the most static build up and can be deadly if not grounded properly.

**pgvoutdoors** · 10-05-2010, 03:00 PM

Back before the CH53E helicopter was introduced we use to make our own grounding rods out of what we had available. We would take a piece of heavy gage wire rod and bend a hook on one end and then attach a section of com wire (land-line communication wire) to the other end of the rod. Then to make a handle we would tape the rod between a couple of pieces of wood. To ensure that the wire would stay on the ground, we added a piece of heavy chain to the end of the com wire. The final step was to have a Private test it out on a incoming helicopter.

While working with CH46's and CH53D's I've grabbed the pendant below the helicopter without grounding it, not recommended but doable.

**LowKey** · 10-05-2010, 07:22 PM

Dad used to tell a story, when he was in the Marines, there was one guy causing extra PT cuz he couldn't get out of bed in the mornings. Til the day someone rigged a helicopter capacitor to his rack. Got up right quick that morning...