Great detective work, slacktide! We were instructed by our "friend" to keep complete silence about our presence on the helicopter. I was proud of my young son who never divulged a word. Also aboard that day was a true friend who brought along his new Nikon camera with motorized film advance. He got excellent inside point-of-view photographs of the autorotation; after escaping, he inserted a new roll of film and got thirty-six frames of the wrecked chopper. I had copies but same were lost in a divorce.
Of further interest: when the engine was sent to the FAA's/NTSB's testbed in Maryland, it started immediately and ran without a hitch. The conclusion is pretty obvious!
- Ed
Last edited by cavuman1; 22nd Oct 2021 at 23:22.