I'm a lapsed learner both fixed and rotary but spent many a happy hour accompanying my father in the left seat. He used to love going through the "oh dear the mill doesn't sound right - we'll have to put her down" routine for unsuspecting, especially novice passengers! He never did have a real EO emergency but the ONE thing I can remember him drumming into me was - LAND STRAIGHT AHEAD! To him and his CFI before him, any kind of turning attempt at low speed glide was - KISS OF DEATH!
So I felt sure I was about to witness a tragedy when an Olde 150 waddled almost silently over me at no more than 400ft and began a turn - ignoring the big field underneath him. I waited for the inevitable ( as I thought ) sound of rending metal but nothing came. Happily, a little while later I was chatting to the intrepid airman as he had executed an almost perfect landing in another field owned by a friend of mine. "How about my Dad's mantra" I asked "Ah, this field is big enough to take off from old chap" said he topping up the oil. However; several policeman appeared and embargoed his cunning plan and said aircraft departed on a lorry a few days later.