gijoe,
The LHS (non handling pilot) was probably doing their job - ie non handling mission management.
The fact it took Ian a few seconds to realise what had occurred (and he was the one that had been hit) suggests the NHP may be forgiven for not wrestling control from him at the moment of impact.
At 50' and 140 kts, how long do you think it would take to potentially impact the ground?
If you have flown a Chinook IRT in Helmand, then I will bow to your informed decision from 4500 miles away, if not probably best to say nothing.
Either way, probably best if you avoid slagging people of in events of which you know little about.
Pr1ck!