The term is capacitor. Most plastic has an anti-static
coating and plastic airplanes have conductive elements
built-in.

Franklin must have said it, the key to electricity is ,
ouch!



"BDS" wrote in message
...
| "Jim Macklin" wrote
|
| Most slow airplanes do not have static discharge wicks,
but
| in the correct conditions, they can build static which
can
| build to very high voltages. It is also possible that
the
| grounds [bonding] between components is not good and
that
| can lead to arcing across hinges and between ailerons
and
| wing, etc.
|
| Snow and ice crystals cause the build up, the fix is
proper
| bonding and static wicks, even on a C172.
|
| Bonding and static wicks will not prevent a static charge
from building on
| an insulator such as the windscreen itself, but they
certainly will keep the
| entire airframe at the same potential as you mention. In
fact,
| theoretically you could have a ground plate on one side of
the windscreen
| and still build a static charge on the other side of the
windscreen under
| the right conditions. That's the nature of static charges
on insulators.
|
| BDS
|
|