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TIL the ILS shelter at a rural airport in Idaho had a wasp nest in the localizer antenna box
I was out at a small field near Twin Falls last month doing a ramp check and noticed the localizer signal was drifting more than usual on my test set. Popped open the antenna box near the approach end and found a paper wasp nest packed around the connector, probably been there since spring. Cleaned it out, resealed the gasket, and the signal steadied right up to within tolerances. Anyone else finding bugs or critters causing weird nav issues, and do you have a trick for keeping them out of those outdoor boxes?
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anthony42615h ago
Stunned that a paper wasp nest of all things could mess with a localizer signal like that. I always figured those boxes were sealed up tight enough that nothing could get in, but I guess wasps don't really care about gaskets. The part that gets me is how long it sat there, since spring, and nobody caught it until you ran a test set on it. Makes you wonder how many other little fields have the same thing going on and just nobody's flown a check in months. I've heard of mud daubers plugging up pitot tubes but never a nest throwing off nav gear. Guess it makes sense though, since anything sitting right on the connector can change how the antenna reads. I'd probably toss a few dryer sheets in there or some of that mint spray around the edges, wasps hate that stuff.
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