On Sun, 02 May 2004 17:34:05 -0400, Bob wrote:

Is it possible that some oil on the transponder antenna would cause it
to transmit intermittently?

I would have wiped it clean and tried it out but it's 5 OVC today....

Probably not. I suspect a loose signal connection or bad ground
connection in the transponder antenna. When you wipe it clean, you
are probably moving the antenna enough to make a temporary connection.
Hit enough turbulence, and the connection goes bad again.

I'd say this is especially the case if the failure mode is on/off.

-Nathan