Submitted photo
Pictured is a helicopter equipped with an aerial saw used to clear areas around high-voltage power lines.

From staff reports

LEWISTOWN — A contractor with FirstEnergy will be using a helicopter equipped with an aerial saw to trim trees to ensure proper clearance around more than 400 miles of high-voltage power lines in areas of Mifflin County.

The work started recently and is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

The aerial saw will also trim along transmission lines located in Bedford, Blair, Bradford, Cambria, Centre, Clearfield, Elk, Huntingdon, McKean, Potter, Somerset, Tioga, Warren, Westmoreland and Wyoming counties.

Maintaining proper clearances around transmission lines and electrical equipment can help prevent or minimize the impact of tree-related power outages, especially those associated with severe weather during the summer and winter storm seasons. Clearing incompatible vegetation under power lines also gives company personnel easier access to inspect and maintain lines and make repairs quicker if an outage occurs.

John Hawkins, FirstEnergy president, said, “Keeping our high-voltage power lines clear of potential interference from trees is an important part of maintaining system 2 reliability. The aerial saw is a specialized tool that allows us to cover hundreds of transmission miles every year in a safe, efficient manner.”

Suspended on a boom beneath the helicopter and equipped with multiple 24-inch rotary blades, the aerial saw is typically used along transmission lines in areas that are environmentally sensitive or inaccessible to bucket trucks and other vehicles. This method of trimming typically covers more area in a day than a ground crew might complete in a week. The saw also eliminates the risk of injury to workers using bucket trucks or climbing trees to cut limbs near high-voltage equipment.

The saw cleanly cuts tree limbs 8 to 10 inches in diameter, which fall straight to the ground propelled by air blasts from the helicopter rotors. Ground crews move limbs that have fallen onto roads, yards, fields or in streams. The ground crew will also flag and stop motorists along roads if the aerial saw is working nearby.

The helicopter flies above and alongside transmission lines and may circle around to perform additional trimming. The pilot communicates with local airport personnel whenever the helicopter is operating within their air space. The helicopter and saw are owned and operated by Aerial Solutions and will work only as weather conditions permit.

View or download video footage of the aerial saw in action on FirstEnergy’s YouTube Channel.

The work is part of FirstEnergy’s $51 million vegetation management program to trim trees along more than 4,100 miles of power lines in the Penelec area in 2025.