That technique came in very handy in dusty areas....especially working sling loads with a Chinook. When you do twenty or thirty of them a day....you develop a certain amount of competence in a hurry.
Add in snowy conditions on an open flat surface....or off a Rig or Platform at night on misty, drizzly, overcast nights....and again that is not an uncommon event.
As to pushing the envelope further for the Bosses....actually I see it as a self defense measure against the Bosses. We are not talking about reducing the Take Off Minimums....we are talking about safer ways of coping with departing from "confined areas and under conditions" that do not allow for "approved" profiles.
The right answer is of course....if the weather is below approved minimums....the weather is below Take Off Minimums....tell the Boss, Arrange for Ground Transport and Accommodation for him, tied the blades down, insert the Blanks and head for the Pub.