Classification of helicopter flying altitudes  

You "Bros" ever fly in the mountains ?  Do you adhere to VFR altitudes +/- 500' ?  do you always fly at an altitude to give you a better chance in the event of a failure.  Do you even enjoy flying.  Its all common sense and experience and what your comfortable with.  

 IMO as for the pilot and people that survived the tailboom failure,  I don't think there was as much skill as luck and the grace of God.  Which ever you believe in.  I think they were very close to impact and rotation slung the tail boom JUST prior to impact.  It may have broke and was flopping but it was still there. In my experience, serious injury or death takes place with the centrifugal loads created by the CG and rotational loads prior to impact with complete loss of the tailboom.  The impact just finishes it.  Regardless, I am glad they all survived and I'm sure the pilot was doing the best he could and its a good lesson to all:  Fly it too impact !!!!

Just to stay in curmudgeon mode,  The new Rotor publication is a great advertisement platform but for content: too many people, acronyms and suits.  Just my 1 cents worth.  I'm retired, I don't have 2 cents anymore.