A helicopter is pictured above transmission lines along Route 60 in Dunkirk. National Grid said a contractor company is performing annual inspections of its equipment. Photo by Brian Carlson

DUNKIRK — Reports of a low-flying helicopter in the Dunkirk-Fredonia area prompted questions from curious onlookers this week. National Grid said the helicopter’s presence is part of annual inspections of equipment.

One such report was near Route 60, in the area of Walmart, on Tuesday. Brian Carlson took a photograph of a helicopter near the transmission lines and shared the image with the OBSERVER.

A National Grid spokesman on Tuesday said a helicopter contractor company was in the area performing an equipment inspection.

According to its website, National Grid says its helicopters patrol more than 21,000 miles of transmission lines each year.

“Helicopters allow us to view and inspect parts of our network quickly, safely and at a lower cost than would otherwise be the case,” the company said. “In the past, the kind of inspections that are now performed by helicopters or drones were undertaken by linespersons climbing up the pylons or towers.

“Inspections from the air have made the process much quicker. For example, it might take three linespersons one day to carry out climbing inspections of three towers, while an airborne observer can inspect six pylons in just one hour.”