Attempted Theft (we think)
Crew set up a base station in asphalt behind k-rail along side a roadway west of the west end of the runways at LAX. We were using a car battery for power. The battery is in a carry bag which is then connected tightly with cinch straps to the tripod for additional stability. When they returned later in the day, they couldn’t see the unit or the tripod until they got next to the k-rail. There it was laying on the ground with its legs splayed out at strange angles. The tribach was in two pieces, one-half connected to the GPS unit, and one-half connected to the tripod. The battery was still strapped to the tripod. After analysis, we figured that someone tried to steal the setup but were confounded by the heavy weight attached to the tripod, and slammed the unit to the ground, breaking the tribach in half. The GPS unit was a little scratched on the edge of the antenna but appears ok. We’ll test the unit before putting it back in service.
When found, the unit was still connected to the battery and still running. With an antenna plot, we determined exactly when the unit went down.
When the crew was originally setting up, an LAX Airport Police car showed up and they wanted to know what we were doing. We have since reported the incident to then and asked them to keep an eye out for our equipment.
It was an odd day.
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