Chopper down in San Antonio

[Rey Ramon]

Came across this video. Last time we were down there, we got our rental right at that exit.

http://www.ksat.com/video/26717959/index.html

[Norberto Rivera]

Awesome autorotation job!!! Looks like a classic engine failure. The rotor is designed to continue turning to allow for a semi-controlled emergency landing. You basically trade altitude for airspeed in a hurry and flare just before touchdown much like in a fixed wing a/c. I'm not exactly sure what they're flying so I don't know how it behaves, but just to give you an idea, in a Robinson R-22 you have about 1.2 seconds to react after an engine failure by lowering the collective (throttle) and pushing the nose down before it drops like a rock. Our AH-58 is a lot more forgiving in that regard, but you still don't want to mess around too long before you do something.