Historical photos released showing cable construction efforts.
on Oct 3 2013 9:13AM
Seventy members of the original construction team that laid a coaxial cable between Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne in the 1960s will come together for a 50 year reunion, which they expect will be the last such gathering. (Photo credit: Telstra)
Beginning in 1960, thousands of workers laid 15,000 tonnes of cable over the 960km route, including passing under 17 rivers. (Photo credit: Telstra)
One of the project's senior engineers, Dick Corin, said the two lead surveyors who planned the cable’s path "walked the entire route and in the end decided to follow the track originally marked by the early [east coast] explorers Hume and Hovell. In a sense the link is a tribute to them". (Photo credit: Telstra)
The rugged areas were surveyed by air before surveyors walked the route. (Photo credit: Telstra)
The cable was laid "over mountains, the sides of gorges, under rivers and beneath many rail crossings, busy roads and under the sprawling suburbs of Melbourne and Sydney," senior engineer Dick Corin said. (Photo credit: Telstra)
The cable took five years to build with the teams laying the cable 60cm-1.2m below the earth’s surface, averaging 8km a day. (Photo credit: Telstra)
Two thousand plans were drafted by hand, 15,000 tonnes of equipment were hauled across the length of the route, with 3000 coaxial joints and 103 minor repeater stations built. (Photo credit: Telstra)
The cable was built in Germany and transported to Australia by ship. (Photo credit: Telstra)
It took two and half years to build at a cost of £7 million (AU$12 million). (Photo credit: Telstra)
According to Telstra, the cable supported the simultaneous live broadcast of the 5th test of the 1962-63 Ashes series to Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne. (Photo credit: Telstra)
The cable remained in use for two decades, when it was finally superseded by optical fibre links. (Photo credit: Telstra)
Seventy members of the original construction team that laid a coaxial cable between Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne in the 1960s will come together for a 50 year reunion, which they expect will be the last such gathering. (Photo credit: Telstra)