Who hasn’t asked themselves the following questions: “What is the purpose of this antenna?”, “Why is it located on Petit Montrond? These are questions that will not go unanswered thanks to Anne-Marie’s investigations.
The symbol of La Faucille!
The Petit Montrond antenna or DTT transmitter is located at the top of the Montrond alpine ski slopes at an altitude of 1532 metres.
It can be seen from both the Lake Geneva plain and the Jura mountains. And that’s normal, because it’s 79 metres high 😉 !
Built between 1961 and 1962, the relay transmitter is located in the commune of Mijoux. It was operated from 1962, initially at low power, then at higher power in 1963.
It is also the main transmitter for the whole of the Ain department (around twenty local transmitters in the department complete the network). The Montrond relay was originally an ORTF (Office de Radio Télévision Française) facility; in 1975 it was transferred to TDF (Télédiffusion De France).
At the top of Montrond, next to the aerial, you’ll find the Grand Tétras restaurant and the upper station of the Télécombi. You can get there via the “La Faucille – Les deux Montronds” hiking trail.
A testimony to the past
For a long time, its operation required a 24-hour human presence. It was not until 1981 that daytime operation was reduced and then fully remote-controlled.
Jacques Duthion, a retired TDF employee who worked at the relay station for many years, shares a few anecdotes with us.
"We had some very difficult times in winter getting to our workstation at Montrond. I remember many times when the gondolas at La Faucille were closed (either because the resort wasn't yet open or because the weather meant that the gondola had to be closed).
The heavy snowfall had completely blocked access. So we had to go up in a "caterpillar" type vehicle, an old army tank!
Often we couldn't even find the road because there was so much snow! It was a real adventure! Even getting back was difficult!
Now, it’s hard to imagine Montrond without the aerial – it’s such an integral part of our beautiful landscape! We’re very attached to this symbol, which is part of our landscape, and we’ll continue to admire it as much as ever!
Thematics
