Every so often work with helicopters and a sling cable.
“And whatever you do - let the cable touch the ground first before you grab it!”
I was told the cable as it flies through the air picks up static electricity. I wonder why the helicopter doesn’t become a “giant capacitor”? Maybe the cable is insulated from the helicopter?
Are you on the ground or in the helicopter? Air is a good insulator, so I would think the whole helicopter would acquire a different charge than the ground as it flies.
It makes more sense to me that the entire helicopter gets charged, not just the cable.