ABOVE THE CLOUDS 03 29 2019 ANTENNA CHANGE OUT

Fearless Crews work above the clouds to remove and replace a television transmitting antenna in Florida. We put you on top of a 1500 foot broadcast tower for a breathtaking perspective on one of the riskiest jobs in the world.

[@bobbyvee8941]

I just discovered I can hold my breath for 26 minutes!

[@ncgsc]

Good one!

[@AdamKyleAnderson]

I found it easier when I closed my eyes and looked away.

[@jamesjoyce5611]

you've met my wife then

[@tmangamingx]

@@AdamKyleAnderson Especially with the guy looked over the side and faced the over 1500 ft. drop off LoL. Brave men I have to have an enclosed cockpit at that height I couldn't do it.

[@garyolafson8303]

The palms of my hands start to sweat, instantaneously .

[@nunyabidness117]

Being that high up you don't have to worry just about falling. You have to worry about burning up upon re-entering the atmosphere.

[@muziekvriend]

😂

[@leejohnson7293]

LMAO

[@deannamills8993]

LOL

[@GJones462-2W1]

Lol. Pretty good.

[@demonknight7965]

🤣

[@billwilson6670]

Apprentice lineman: "Oops, I just dropped my wrench." Supervisor: "Climb down and get it."

[@tsrealtexan7333]

No you scream headache and then you never find it less it’s in bedded in somebody’s head You should hear how that Rich or channel locks or whatever sounds as it’s falling from that height. He definitely knows somethings coming down. I used to climb these things but I never installed an antenna that size

[@zipcode7219]

Our son did this work for one summer .. I prayed for him everyday

[@batschi12]

This is a Summer Job??? Holy moly.....

[@watzittuya1279]

Im sure he made a lot of money tho

[@priyaraj866]

8

[@eliaskrumsvik2776]

It pays well. I get about 20 dollars a hour

[@nicksherman88]

@@eliaskrumsvik2776 $20 an hour ? Really ? What state? Because I keep my feet on the ground without that empty pit feeling in my stomach and wrench on trucks all day for $44 an hour

[@dodgewrench7221]

honestly it's people like these who keep the world turning, props

[@yvonnebraun7]

@Dodge hello,how are you doing

[@feraxks]

Some serious piloting skills on display there. I can't imagine how difficult it must be to hold the helo virtually still like they did.

[@SuperRede4u]

The Erickson Aircrane (formerly Sikorsky) was tailor made for this kind of work. There is two pilot positions both manned, the forward facing pilot flys to the site then the rearward pilot (directly viewing the load) takes over and flys the cargo to its ultimate destination. Not easy peasy but I would think that it's a magnitude easier than regular chopper would be.

[@mr11k29]

@@SuperRede4u Thanks! I was curious about that clear bubble behind the pilot, and how they could see in a forward facing position.

[@hootgibsonxplane]

pretty sure it has some type of hover/attitude/altitude hold mode with the upgraded avionics. but still...not something for the faint of heart as far as pilots go.

[@LinuxJedi]

Bien Agiter modern technology && auto hover...xd

[@feraxks]

@@SuperRede4u TIL, thanks!

[@dopeytripod]

a good buddy I grew up with passed away by falling from one of these RIP ROBBIE

[@jerrykrausz8339]

Sorry to hear that Dope. RIP ROBBIE

[@erichauck5747]

How Horrible R.I.P. Robbie

[@parabelluminvicta8380]

RIP Robbie.

[@soportuguese354]

Rest in peace

[@newmanstrucking5834]

Im still here

[@richardbicknell2140]

Hats off to the helicopter pilot. To hover a large helicopter keeping so still is truly skilful

[@kennethsizer6217]

No kidding! I'd definitely opt for climbing the tower over piloting that chopper!

[@SearchBucket2]

Skycrane helicopters have complex position stabilization technology

[@bsbforum]

Autopilot is a thing

[@dutchlogitechclan]

@@bsbforum Well yes but no

[@glennelliott7009]

Computers at its finest

[@gregmorris6604]

As a lineman I can appreciate the professionalism of these guys on the tower and the helicopter crew. When the main line released prematurely they knew what to do to correct the situation. If I was a little younger than 60 I would love to do this for the experience. You guy's get 10 stars in my book.

[@abovetheclouds2159]

The tower spotter was instrumental in helping Connor and Russel re-attach the load line clevis and release the choker lines to free the assembly

[@societalpreferences9182]

wrong.

[@yung_megafone]

@@societalpreferences9182 huh? The guy who did the job and posted the video says otherwise

[@moiraatkinson]

You could do it Greg, I’m sure!

[@BreannaMae]

Watching this video gave me serious anxiety! Anyone who can successfully do this with zero issues has my total respect!

[@GrooveFederation]

same

[@willierants5880]

They make bank, but even then I wouldn't do it. Which is why they make bank! :)

[@guymerritt4860]

I can't even watch this kinda stuff....seriously.

[@BreannaMae]

@@guymerritt4860 Yet here we are, watching it lol. I couldn't make it through the entire video. I got a few minutes in and stopped playing it lol.

[@guymerritt4860]

@@BreannaMae Yeah....me too. I get vertigo and anxiety just watching this stuff - don't know how people can do this kinda thing....

[@johnkauker3046]

Guys like this make it possible for the rest of us to sit on our ass and watch TV. I remember changing out a 3/4" stainless sample line on a 500' off gas stack at a nuke plant in the 80's, when we were done the boss said we could go home early, and in my youth I wondered why? I hate getting old. Thanks guys for showing us that fearless men with balls of steel still exist in this country. Be safe and prosper!

[@jasonexploring]

Where we gonna sit. On our heads.

[@jasonexploring]

Just because we don't do this job we are lazy and it's a bad thing to sit on our ass and watch TV. Get a life nut

[@rgamore]

You can have that job, I'm a ground lover and sometimes that's a problem! Hats off to the high wire crew....

[@ronaldacarter8079]

Koi koi koi

[@njaneardude]

Like the Great Seal 😁

[@pauldg837]

Even my cat passed out watching this.

[@ANTHONY-xn9dv]

😂😂😂😂

[@ishotthetrixbunny9773]

I know right lol

[@world2give77]

For all you peeps talkin' about your hands sweating etc, when it comes to heights you either have it or you dont... For high steel workers the heights don't phase us at all. For me, I can truthfully attest that the higher the work, the better I feel... On the other hand, working a load with the S-64 skycrane is another story; that can get a bit loud and rather stressing at times... But on typical high work once you're alone up there with the wind, the world is so peaceful down below... I am actually more comfortable hanging off the top of a 2000' antenna than I am while riding a motorcycle or taking off/landing in a plane- or even working off a 16'' ladder.... One thing I learned many years ago is that while "in the air", always respect where you are at the moment and never get too smug in that moment... Thanks for this video... I wish it was full length/all cameras/unedited.... I kind of want to be able to watch certain parts of their entire process in real time.

[@hootinouts]

The skills of the tower crew and pilots seen here are second to none. I thoroughly enjoyed the amazing footage you shared. May you all remain safe in your work.

[@XinaCCPFreeTibet]

Wow .. those pilots held that helicopter like it was sitting on a parking lot. And excellent co-ordination between the crew to get this done safely. Hats off to all of them.

[@Edward681]

Those dudes have steel balls. I don't even like getting on my roof.

[@robertbiastre6037]

steel balls are required!

[@Neojhun]

I weirdly do like being on my 2.5 story roof (house is on a slope), there is an awesome view up there. Just don't get near the tallest wall.

[@paolocoletti3424]

I think I could do this, looks amazing ! I fly paragliders and its all about feeling secure. They are always tied on with safety lines/harnesses and alternate ones when ascending/descending. If you follow safety rules and above all have faith in the equipment it's possible to ignore the height. I've been at 8500ft above the ground effectively belted into a cloth seat held on by only a pair of karabiners being tossed about like a rag doll in the turbulence of a thermal. No problem it was fun ! BUT I get nervous butterflys in my stomach when I watch a film about ballooning when they lean over the edge of the basket ! Crazy stuff the brain

[@randyporter3491]

Tim Price Agree Tim, me either ! I don’t even like being this tall ! Watching this made me feel like I was falling off the couch. But, not as bad as the videos of the Russian thrill seekers, who dangle off antennas & cranes with one hand, do cartwheels etc. i cant watch those.

[@leeenfield4018]

But...but....but....women only make 75% of men! I demand that 8 women teaching pre-school to toddlers in a climate controlled classroom make as much money as these 8 guys on a 1500 fot tower!

[@mtang65]

"The signal is given to release the Load" I like that line.

[@kman-mi7su]

HAHA Had the same signal the other night at my girlfriends house.

[@kendallevans4079]

I would have released a load at 500ft

[@kendallevans4079]

@@kman-mi7su Classy! NOT

[@jovetj]

The only load I would have released is my bowels, about 40 feet up...

[@johnrtrucker]

@Travis Bloom welcome to the comment section 😂

[@gregoutdoors7]

Passed out 3 times while watching, kept forgetting to breathe!

[@tommybrown9034]

@Gregg Funny... That tickled me

[@josephorr5175]

That was truly exhilarating. I cannot even imagine being that high on a tiny platform. Amazing coordination and preparation made this a safe operation for all. Good job!

[@Bran.man24]

I would buy my own parachute and wear it every time I went up.

[@johnvale6992]

I was actually sitting forward and on the edge of my seat from about 2 minutes in... this was absolutely an A+ professional job! My prayers are with you for the next job you have like this.

[@daviddecker9457]

Till the pilot screwed up and release the main hook. Luckily nobody got hurt.

[@humanoid31]

I wouldn't be caught DEAD hanging from up there! GREAT SCOTT!!!

[@wm7312]

I can't imagine all the coordination between the air crew and the tower crew to make all this operation run some what smoothly. There are hiccups but they solve them as professionals they are. Great job

[@henryjon45able]

All people involved in this are amazing humans, god bless them.

[@TwoFingeredMamma]

No they are not. They have just built a device that transmits a signal into your house. You have a box which decodes that signal and it is this box that keeps you brainwashed and in a trance. You may not know this but the people that own these TV companies are practicing satanists. So saying "God Bless them" is really really out there hahaha!!

[@Riven55555]

@@TwoFingeredMamma u wot m8?

[@TwoFingeredMamma]

​@@Riven55555 I'll spell it out for you one more time. The owners of all the TV companies are practicing s@t@nists and they use this device to brainwash you. You have the intelligence to query my statement but seen as you spend all your time playing computer games there is no hope for you in ever reversing your brainwashed state as it requires reading books and studying to reverse your brainwashed state of being and judging by your English language skills "U WOT M8" i doubt you will ever catch on to what is really going on. I'll throw you a bone, if you are genuinly curious. I will give you a link to view but i will have to write it in code to defeat the censorship algorithms as these same people who control the TV also own this platform too. So i will change some of the letters in this link to fool the system. Watch 3uropa: Th3 l4st b4ttle for starters. its on b1tchut3.

[@Maintenance_Mark]

@@TwoFingeredMamma This might come as a surprise to both of you but let me enlighten you. There is no such thing as a satan and there are no gods. Until and unless you can provide some repeatable, verifiable, scientific evidence for these "gods"that you have imagined then they do not exist by default. That is the default starting position for everything. There needs to be evidence to prove the existence of a thing no matter what that thing is and no matter how old a book is and no matter how many people pretend it's real and no matter how many people imagine that they had an experience that was all in their head. Books that were written by ancient desert dwelling goat herders don't count as evidence. Do you think the quran is proof that allah exists? If your answer is no then we agree and you now understand why the bible is NOT evidence for a god and can never be. If you think there is evidence for your god then please submit that evidence for examination. Better yet call the local news station and get yourself on the monday morning live news so you can show the whole world the evidence you have to prove the existence of a god finally for the first time in the existence of humanity! You will be the first human to provide a single shred of anything nar evidence of a god. Collect your nobel peace prize for being the first and only human to provide evidence of a god and then you will be rich and you will be spreading the word of your god so much further! Go ahead! See you when you get that nobel prize!

[@atcmansfield2508]

Man I work for American Tower and always in awe when I see what happens on the front lines. Great Job fellas!!!!!!!!!!1

[@JohnCope]

T-Mobile here. Same thing. Crazy.

[@AM-yy5tp]

Wow! My palms were sweating when the line didn't disconnect properly at the end...you guys all kept your cool and got the job done. Amazing work 👍👍👍

[@Michael.Chapman]

Keep these videos coming please. The sense of vertigo is overwhelming-the admiration too!

[@mclovinsexycheeseburger9330]

That could of gone SOOO much worse, impressive to see them adapt and overcome the accident, glad no one was hurt and a job well done!!!

[@robdavis1176]

Whatever those guys are getting paid, they deserve it. My bud does this crap and there is no way in hell I could.

[@davidonion4150]

@Paul Pflaum What do you reckon the injury/death percentage is for a crew member?

[@ivyandroses4373]

Where do I send a donation Watching this was better than any Six flags adventure. 😨😨😨😨

[@DankMemesForAngryTeens]

Paul Pflaum It’s very rare that people die on these

[@mindwreckRC]

most tower hands don't get paid shit.. idiots demanding 15 an hour to flip burgers will make more than some of the tower guys ive met.

[@UkrainianBazooka]

@Ricky Sanchez We get paid between 17-25 an hour for this type of stuff. These broadcast guys might make more but typical tower climbers are under 20 an hour. It's like any other dangerous job, you've gotta be careful and kinda crazy. Over all, it's the best job I've ever had and I love climbing towers.

[@chrismoyler]

How the helicopter can achieve this degree of stability for this prolonged length of installation time is nothing less than a miracle! Incredible calm work by the pilot!

[@yvonnebraun7]

@Chris hello,how are you doing

[@timstoffel4799]

Things must have improved substantially in 24 years. We were contemplating doing a helicopter lift for a new installation at WVFT TV in Roanoke, VA in 1986. The challenge there wasn't height, but getting a 60 foot long antenna up a mountain road full of switchbacks, in a forest. We were told at the time that the crew would have 20 seconds to get the first three bolts in, as that was all the positioning stability the helicopter could achieve, We ended up using a truck that had a tractor with a very low cab. The antenna hung off both ends of the truck, one end going over the cab. We had a crane go in front of the truck, and another crane (and a tow truck) behind it. The truck driver was able to get it to the site without assistance of the cranes, Building that tower was one of the moist interesting jobs I have done in my broadcast engineering career.

[@spaghetti9845]

@@timstoffel4799 moist...

[@LyricTenor85]

Auto hover on that chopper, I believe.

[@LudwigHohlwein1974]

I get the feeling that helicopter pilot knows their shit, inside out. Talk about mad skills!! Holy crap, getting those first few bolts in while an entire copter is pulling on the antenna? Then that snarl up towards the end?! So much respect for these legends. Fucking wow!

[@clay9333]

My Dad would say: “What the hell was wrong with the old antenna?”

[@SmokiesDen]

Tuned for the wrong frequency. The old one was for channel 34 the new one is for channel 20.

[@miguelcartagena8901]

hahahahahaha this is great

[@sakeeler]

🤣

[@madjidhamdini8114]

@@SmokiesDen HAHAhahahahahah !!!

[@dogbarbill]

That's pretty much what my dad would say as well.

[@winty318]

A bit of dirt is wiped away...... trust me there would be more than dirt to wipe away if I was there!!!!!!!

[@thomasreed8710]

What is the terminal velocity of a hunk of dirt?

[@devitomichael]

Thomas Reed - The acceleration due to gravity is -9.8 m/s^2 multiplied by the dirt’s aerodynamic drag in Newtons(N). Air density multiplied by the drag coefficient multiplied by the area of dirt all divided by 2 and then multiplied by velocity squared just sayin’

[@SkyWire88]

In other words -------------about 210 M.P.H. !

[@deduct2175]

THANK YOU, I have not had a good laugh in a month!

[@MJofLakelandX]

@@thomasreed8710 it becomes shit

[@DannyMac786]

well done, i have been an union iron worker for over 47 years, i have worked all over the usa canada and the world, i am living in northern ontario canada. worked on towers for 5 years. different animal all together. work safe guys

[@Ripen3]

I'm a paragliding pilot, I'm fairly OK with heights, but I would never in a million years do your job😆 much respect!

[@Daluke61]

So much more interesting than "Reality TV". This shit's for real.

[@dogbarbill]

Really! You couldn't script this stuff!

[@albertbatfinder5240]

I’ve done this job heaps of times, except it wasn’t a tower and an antenna, but a pretty big Xmas tree and a tinsel star.

[@tomtucker8849]

I stopped on a country road about 2 years back to watch this event take place. These guys work in unison and get the job done.

[@WebberAerialImaging]

I love the cable leader idea. We have the luxury of setting tower sections from a crane so don't need that but it's brilliant. I flew in a Sky Crane, once, in the box the Army would carry. I couldn't believe the amount of rotor wash coming off of it. Amazing you didn't lose any gear off the tower being below that much rotor wash!

[@johnsiders7819]

we did that when I worked wild well to set the head back on the well after we extinguished the fire except the cables were hooked to a dozer to keep it from being blown back up from the force of the oil or gas escaping at high pressure the head was set by a athey wagon hooked to another dozer .

[@NickNZ]

Haven’t seen this on “Undercover Boss”!

[@BadWebDiver]

LOL!

[@Stark81766]

And you probably won't.

[@greenthumb6875]

Nick Jordan you hit that right on. LOL

[@robertkrueger228]

Might make a story for the handyman magazine//??

[@johngarvin9580]

We had these guys come install transmission lines for the company I work for. I'm just a mechanic, but I got to spend 3 days sitting there watching them in case something broke I was right there. The wind these put off is intense, insane even. The fact that these guys work like this is nuts, but they all love it.... These guys are not cheap, but they are great at what they do. When they get close to where the load is placed, there is another piliot in a bubble cab in the back that takes over the controls to place the load.

[@jrbarber7]

John, you are not "just" a mechanic. How long do you think those things would stay in the air without your expertise?

[@replynotificationsdisabled]

Imagine swaying on a pole 1000 feet up. Haha.

[@paulconrad7649]

Hats off to you guys for doing such a difficult job. It takes nerve of steel to do this.

[@Dirk80241]

Hats off to the climbers and the pilot! You have to totally trust the safety lines in this line of work.

[@4351steve]

I met a tower guy several years ago. They are a different kind of character. He knew several friends and coworkers that had lost their lives doing this work.

[@yvonnebraun7]

@Snyder hello,how are you doing

[@makecba]

can we take a moment to appreciate that helicopter pilot? You have no idea how hard it's to hover around for such a long time...

[@vonzigle]

It would certainly need to be a wind free day!

[@tubeDude48]

Very cool! When I lived in Phoenix, AZ I used to climb the transmitter towers on South Mountain and change the light bulbs, or re-aligned the satellite antennas. So I really appreciate the work these buys did.

[@SilveniumTheDrifter]

What a beautiful view! That looks so awesome. I'm envious of your guys' jobs!

[@markviereck4547]

I’m sick to my stomach just watching this. Crazy.

[@basimpsn]

I did this kind of work but not that high...My problem was losing my wrench and yelling "Heads up" lol

[@SBCBears]

The image movement induces nausea in me. I don't mind the heights nor implicit danger, but the image swirling around makes me sick.

[@haybasu]

Mad respect to these guys. They deserve more pay something tells me they don't get paid enough..

[@robertrachels1870]

With the hourly pay plus Annuity and Pension and Healthcare it's one of the best paying jobs l had. Union pay is the Way! In 2010 l was getting $40 per hour and the Fringe worked out to $25 per hr for my Pension $19 per for Annuity and Health and Welfare is what they used to call it but now l think it's just Healthcare. So l imagine these guys are making $90 per hour and taking home half that on their weekly paychecks. From an old Ironworkers point of view. I think these guys are considered "Linemen electricians" but it's got to be Union work..

[@bauncey-chillups4638]

@@robertrachels1870 incorrect. There is barley the beginnings of a union for tower workers. We most certainly do not make as much money as we should. Lineman make 3-4x more and we climb much higher, we just don’t deal with any sort of high voltages.

[@robertrachels1870]

@@bauncey-chillups4638 I just assumed that they were Union workers. And as Union members they would get paid Fringe benefits per Hour, (the Pension, Annuity and Health and Welfare) on top of their Hourly wage. So whatever Company that needed and hired the Workers they will be charged at least 2 to 3 times the Hourly rate that the workers earn per hour. I think you should Organize for better pay. So that you are paid the Prevailing Wage of your Trade.

[@garykong7597]

I'm weak, just watching it gives me anxiety lol

[@ericcheatwood7248]

I like the idea of the wire leaders when you're putting it back on. That's pretty smart and something I would've never thought of.

[@SustainedFuture]

Warning label on antenna: "Do not ride while lifting." I wonder what incident led to that labeling requirement.

[@deanrobert8674]

It was called riding the hook, it's how all the old school riggers would get about the job site. Bloody nutters

[@jacobsparry8525]

There is a video some where at KZbin I did watched about 2 years ago which did show it liked 3 ofed guys fall offed whened did some thing failed .

[@Zoomer30]

Some guy even crazier then the guys on the antanna was on the job the day they came up with that label. Or Major Kong.

[@nate1643]

JacobsParry is English your first language?

[@jaredkelly930]

JacobsParry the Senior Road Tower collapse in Texas in 1982 perhaps? There’s video about that on KZbin, killed 5 guys I think.

[@jimnorton8861]

That almost gave me a panic attack when they were aligning and fastening the new antenna into place. Hard hats off to you guys for doing this type of work.

[@LightYagamiVSL]

Jim Norton maybe you should stick to Paw Patrol and Barney then, manlet

[@Archie_Haddock]

After clenching my teeth for almost half an hour I have a headache... These guys are the coolest! My appreciation of TV shows, any TV show just skyrocketed knowing what effort it is to get the signal to my set 😂

[@christophermarshall5765]

Awesome coordination between pilots & tower crew. Excellent view from up there!!!

[@tedwilliams7021]

Gives me heart attack to watch but I can’t look away either. Amazing views

[@razamadaz3417]

The most riveting thing i've seen in long time on KZbin, You guys all deserve medals.

[@gigiclimber7694]

Superb production. Great insight of various tasks and teamwork. Helpful to see what I am about to get into. Thanks for the video.

[@denbusa1965]

Thanks all 4 shearing the job with us just a amazing and the view :-) thanks again den UK

[@kentuckytim4443]

Yeah, that’s the kind of stuff that nightmares are made of right there!

[@slobama]

They couldn't pay me enough to this kind of work. Got dizzy just watching it.

[@MICKSHRED]

Well, no ones offering or asking you too

[@USNVA11]

Rick Underwood - Oh no, I beg to differ. Fonzie was quite successful in being a jackass.

[@WaytogoEinstein]

USNVA11 You are correct sir. 🍻

[@martyspargur5281]

Looking down is easy. Looking up is hell.

[@garyolafson8303]

The palms of my hands start to sweat.

[@censoreditali-american6487]

I would be thrilled to go have a beer with this crew after an install like this! WoW!!! I thought me hanging from a water tower by my PFPG was crazy, pffffft, these ladies and gents pilots/workers are working along side our Lord on his lawn, aka the clouds. Just AMAZING!!

[@skyeram]

A friend and I both worked for separate tower companies, his had shirts with the slogan "I get high on the job"... one of the coolest high steel shirts I've seen.

[@ReadyKiloWhat]

The excitement gets more intense in the northern states (michigan) when it is below freezing with the wind blowing in a -10 F wind chill and there is ice on the tower. As a former broadcast engineer (now retired) we worked with John Williams many times. He is one of the best. His efforts kept CMU public broadcasting on the air. Thanks and stay safe.

[@jb6712]

I'm a northern lower Michigan native, Mr. Denheeten, and I can deeply appreciate what you and your crews had to/have to do on the job. Even always being "ground bound," I know how cold it gets, and how extremely dangerous it must be up on those towers.

[@jeffadams7383]

Hell of a job guys! It takes balls to do a job like that! And nerves of steel! From the chopper pilot to the tower crew and the ground crew! It's men like these that keep this great nation going! The average person dosent get to see this! They just see a tower and don't have any idea how it was assembled? Great video, and a great job!

[@copykon]

I was a rf tech about 25 years ago and my boss was a climber and it was just still a start-up back then. He told me stories about climbs gone wrong and guys falling. Just watching this I am thankful that I made a career change =D

[@aerial558]

I am tv aerial rigger and don’t mind heights but this takes it to a different level. Men of steel, to be honest I could not do that? Big respects 👍 the skill from every body in this project including the helicopter pilot incredible.

[@bobhidley9037]

Seems like the delicate, and brave, work of astronauts working outside their space station.

[@yvonnebraun7]

@Bob hello,how are you doing

[@weijingburr2392]

My dad used to do this. He built television broadcast towers all over Europe and the middle east. Much respect for the work you do. It's up there for most dangerous, right after high voltage line repair. Meaning had homeboy done the same thing on high voltage and not ground the helicopter load, woooooo boy.

[@extra330sc]

Nice team work. Nobody gets hurt. Great job!

[@jacklandismcgowan1413]

Great job…👍 Started watching WTVX back in the 70’s

[@CAD-th1qe]

Teamwork made those lifts go right.Those boys on that tower are war horses! Ive rigged and trained many.Just on a diferent scale heavy lift marine stuff.No room for mistakes.This work is just plain Skyhook stuff!Hats off to the pilots and the person on the tower communicating with them .They had a small delay assesed what went wrong and got it done.Well done.

[@joelgenung2571]

Freakin' incredible professionalism. Your cajones put mortal men (like me) to utter shame.

[@markferguson5064]

@ 18:25 man and helicopter trying to co-ordinate. Amazing!! Props to both!

[@yvonnebraun7]

Hello @Mark how are you doing

[@plhebel1]

All in a day's work,, Outstanding Job, Well Done. Had a chance to help replace a repeater ant on a 600 ft tower,, 146 megs. Elevators had been out of service for a long time,, hand climb up with a 1/2 hour break halfway,, They told me it was an 2 hour climb. I wanted to go, but the plans were never made due to having lack of weekends open, and having a great clear day worth of weather in the forecast. Before long the winter came and never did climb it,, I wouldn't do it today if asked.

[@longnamedude3947]

That piloting by the heli pilot is very impressive stuff, you've got to be aware of the helicopter itself, the tower and all it's supporting cables/rigging, the antenna mast, and lastly but no less important... The 4 crew members on the top of the tower that are removing the old mast and installing the new mast. It is a good thing these Sky-Cranes have a backwards facing rear compartment to the cockpit to help locate the antenna, these helicopters are a real workhorse machine and even after 60 years of operation they are immensely impressive at what they are capable of.

[@kennethsizer6217]

I thought a lot about that chopper pilot... Pretty sure I'd rather be the guy on the tower than him.

[@Yodavich]

Last few summers here in Melbourne Aus. We've had Delilah parked just up from our hangar for fire fighting. I was talking to one of the guys that maintain it and he showed me the rear facing compartment and it has controls that can be handed over from the front and the guy facing rearwards actually flies the chopper when doing this kinda stuff. Pretty awesome machines. Doing antennas or fighting fires these guys are absolutely brilliant at what they do.

[@normanbrunt2053]

I'd be worried about the wires supporting the mast. I could'nt see them very well and while concentrating on controlling the helecopter would likely forget about them!

[@weeardguy]

@@normanbrunt2053 Those are hard to spot. In the seventies or so, a small plane clipped one of the guywires of the Hoogersmilde radiotower in the Netherlands (the same that suffered total failure and collapse in 2011 after a fire). The tower then bent in a scary manner to the side where the weight of the remaining guy wires was pulling it sideways. This was eventually restored. There is belief that this accident caused the collapse of the tower in 2011 as the main structure was already weakened according to those people, with the fire easily weakening a structure 'that could not collapse'. If I remember it right, temperatures reaching 700 degrees or so were measured before the thing came down...

[@SeanWyseman]

Those helicopter rotors also sound really badass when you're there. The rotor blades are massive & sound like it.

[@966Mako]

I'd put money on me dropping my socket wrench.

[@vicortiz5105]

Titus Cato hahaha and Killing someone at the Bottom lol

[@jonathanpangborn6980]

It happens a lot. You're supposed to scream "HEADACHE" into the radio when you do it.

[@johnDukemaster]

Strange the tools aren't attached to a wire or something to prevent that.

[@JimCvit]

Wrench? I'd drop a load in my pants

[@hearliam]

tools are supposed to be tethered, well in Australia they are,

[@joebrown1382]

Lineman for 30 years & no bucket truck from 1963 till retirement. I can appreciate what these guys do. They have some large attachments for sure. Props to the helo pilot. Glad all went well.

[@agile3057]

well done guys! respect. it tickled us in my stomach just to see it. That pilot is really good, it takes a man or a woman to fly that helicopter ... Bravo

[@JLBREMER]

So this is what happens when the channel goes Temporarily off air lol I work for a cable company and when work is done to the television network people flip out on the phones. If they only knew exactly how hard you were working to replace and upgrade the antenna. Some customers even demand to ''go'' to where the outage is. I wish I could say, ''oh ok mam, yes they will be exactly 1500 ft in the air waiting for you to come complain about a half a days worth of inconvenience.

[@garyggarner7738]

I’m in awe of the patience, skill, and determination of this team to get the job done!!! I Love to Fly - however, I want to be inside the aircraft! We have no idea whatsoever what these awesome people go through so we can have our TV Signals. I was tense during the entire video! Whatever you are paid - it is not enough. From a safety standpoint, are the suits they are wearing shielded to protect from microwaves and transmission frequencies from the antennas? I had a dear friend that climbed towers and noted there seemed to be a higher incidence of cancer. Dave’s wife was a Physician and he developed a rare Lymphoma after 5 years on the job. Is there a correlation? That’s still debated in the scientific community.

[@5degreenegativerake]

Gary G Garner No expert on this but there are guidelines for how close you can get to the antenna when it is energized. Your life would be short if you stood right next to the antenna at full power. No doubt exposure to radiation causes us all sorts of ailments, cancer included.

[@evanwolfe3960]

Your an idiot...

[@RandomUser2401]

the real question is why you still use this ancient type of broadcasting in 2020, requiring such massive, expensive and dangerous infrastructure.

[@FAN83828A]

@@RandomUser2401 Because of the number of subscribers and devices that still utilize it

[@wurstwasser6567]

I could never do that. If the pilot makes even the slightest mistake, or there's a sudden wind... Hats off to the people and the pilots.

[@MIKEPGH]

The sudden wind would be coming from my backside.

[@flagmichael]

They won't fall far. OSHA requires fall protection for (IIRC) six feet or more above the ground. There are exceptions but towers are not one of them. Each has a fall arrest harness that limits the amount of damage done and the distance if they fall... but that does not mean they will not be injured. Wind is nearly always present and is a real pain. I was in a crew when we had to replace an O-ring in a waveguide at 55 feet... piece of cake except the temperature was about 30 degrees and the wind was 35 mph. We were each limited to 30 minutes exposure with 60 minutes warming again, which meant about 10-15 minutes on location.

[@miggrodriguez9996]

Wow, what a rush of ...whatever, ....something? I just couldn't move from the edge of my seat in front of my monitor and held my breath before I realized it was a video. I wouldn't be able to do this kind of work if my life depended of it. Hats of to the crew up there, including the ones in the chopper.

[@libertyone5853]

Total respect for the pilot & the ironworkers. Balls of steel.

[@paulcarter2907]

They have keep them in the seperate bag, on a load line!!!!!!

[@ronniepirtlejr2606]

Without brave people like that, we wouldn't have our technology!

[@webrumrunner]

Or skyscrapers.

[@DIYMikeT]

and the guy at Mcdonalds, wants to get paid the same as this guy

[@iamrichrocker]

damn..you guys are steady..chopper pilot is the boss..smooth and accurate...earn every penny and a whole lotta respect..fantastic view of a day on the job..amazing..

[@manbearpig2164]

He almost killed them when he dropped that last piece

[@rafa6694]

A lot of courage, they are very crazy.best regards and thanks for the video.

[@bushmaster2936]

I wonder if spiders climb that high. Has anyone seen my anxiety pills? The ending was totally freaking me out !!

[@robertsanchez1563]

Damn my heart was beating out of control jus watching this video. Great job to all the crew involved with this project. Nerves of steel!

[@mhenhawke5093]

And balls of titanium!

[@awesometopics1988]

I watched this video twice just to get a sense of reality and appreciate being on the ground floor of my house .. I'm gonna have dreams of being that high now... These guys are truly the bravest of the brave.. At any moment anything could go wrong and the matter how many points of contact you have if the tower falls or anything almost certain death so I give many thanks to these guys..

[@derikroy6366]

The underwater welders that build/perform maintenance on off shore drilling rigs would be a close second then. I'm not sure what would be more dangerous lol.

[@williamwilkins3084]

I just had one about this last night!

[@vOCesUGa1]

You had me on the edge of my seat the entire time! BALLS OF STEEL!! Im gonna go crawl back in my nonfat skim milk latte and finish these TP reports!!

[@michaelwhalen5058]

Can you spell "acrophobia?"

[@TS-ef2gv]

@@michaelwhalen5058 What do spiders have to do with it? (joke btw)

[@DATWagonator]

So much respect for these guys and the engineering behind it all is amazing but I truly do love seeing things like the tool used to keep the top on while he got the last bolt off or the lead wires that helped guide the tower top into its correct spot and I feel most of the time it is the guys on the ground or in the air in this case who get the ideas for these things to make their jobs easier. Engineers are amazing at what they do but sometimes you need someone who has hands on experience that can come in and say this is what works and this is what doesn't and this is what would make things better. If companies don't utilize the people who use their products to improve then most of the time those companies die.

[@b3j8]

Florida...Lightning Central! Wonder how many times that antenna took a hit!

[@joel9087]

I have extreme vertigo and whenever i watch videos like these i feel light headed and sometimes have to look away to calm down, but honestly thanks to videos like these my vertigo have actually gotten better and i can now do wall climbing indoors which i couldn't do before. I am sure that within a few months of watching videos like these i'll be free from my vertigo ^^.

[@Briansgate]

I agree. I watch about 3 minutes and I feel like I'm falling into my monitor.

[@moci42]

Me too, gives me the willies watching. It takes a special person to do this kind of work.

[@ThisIS_Insane]

Props to you for working on your issue in a most agreeable way! KUDOS!

[@peteiswriteingnow]

As Steve McQueen in Towering Inferno said to Paul Newman you have to keep building these things higher and higher.

[@deborahchesser7375]

Truly unreal, these guys are the best of the best.

[@wildernessradio1653]

I could feel the blood in my face and neck causing me anxiety as they were lining up the final antenna and trying to get the bolts in. What a rush!

[@greendryerlint]

These are guys that truly earn their pay.

[@EnjoyLife-sg3kt]

This would be an awful time to have violent diarrhea

[@greendryerlint]

@@EnjoyLife-sg3kt Not that there's a great time for violent diarrhea, but it would also not be too pleasant of an experience for the ground crew if he let fly from the top of that tower..

[@Nethanel773]

Amazing! Thank you for putting this up!

[@dgreginald9554]

Amazing team face no problem at all....great job done....