I tried to do a skid touch where some parts of the skids touch the ground while you flying to help stabilize the helicopter but the cinematic prevent you from using the cyclic and collective, resulting of a crash at the end of the cinematic …
seriously how could they had not think about that … that show the dedication to the missions …
Yep. Although I really like the actvive flying of helicopters, I realize the core focus should still remain on fixed wing. It is unfortunate, but I think most people still avoid flying helicopters.
Also, I ran into one of the missions where tree coverage was 100% out further than 500m as someone posted or rather .5 nm with no where to land. I took a crash and then just exited the mission.
Oh, and yep, trying to pickup a load from a ship while in the CH-47 was extremely difficult. As one poster stated, when you get over the pad, the ground effect really throws off your approach stability.
But, I’m a glutton for Asobo/MSFS 2024 punishment, take the penalties, and continue on until the helicopter niche gets some updates. Or, they allow 3rd party helicopters in career missions that are a lot more likelyy to be enjoyable to fly.
I found it particularly dissappointing that Asobo chose to model the 125 version without any trim function per the Asobo Dev stream - " Our helicopter [the 125 vesion chosen to be] modelled doesn’t have trim. I don’t know what to say.". That leads me to beleve/hope 3rd party support for helicopters in career and the game will come sonner than later - possibly specifically chosen as to not infringe on the 3rd party developer market.
What I was able to do in this mission was to descend on very small trees (no collision) on a hillside. After the helicopter is steady on the ground, leave it pressing Shift + C, walk towards the victim and a bug will happen that will instantly move the victim into the helicopter, then you can press Shift + C again and takeoff normally… I don’t know how much further you can actually land and go walking but that worked for me.
I’ve just failed a helicopter S&R mission, as the victim was embedded in tall trees and the nearest clearing was over a mile away. I did try to land at that clearing and walk, but as soon as i got a few hundred yards from my helo, the mission got failed.
When I touched down, the victim marker was 1.33nm away, so it would have been a hefty uphill trek anyway. 
If Career mode is going to do ■■■■ like this, they’re either going to have to create a clearing, within spitting distance of the victim, or provide a landing opt out, and let the ground crew recover the hapless victim.
And that despite all the testing they have done before release, so unfortunate… 
The way the game plays, it must be more than just bugs. There must be a saboteur working within Asobo. How can so many “bugs” be so specific as to cause people to fail when just loading into a mission? It appears to be an almost intentional act by design. It is more than just random occurrances. IMO
My first SAR mission with my new SAR aircraft:
After skipping to taxi, I was still stuck in the building. Fortunately it didn’t immediately crash my new aircraft and I could exit to main menu.
I try to find helo S&R missions that are in one of the mountain ranges in Europe or anywhere where there aren’t many trees, as I’ve had to abort yet another one of these.
However, as helo S&R missions appear to be in very short supply, perhaps due to a fault in the mission creation code, that is way easier said than done. I can see just one helo S&R mission in a significant number of active areas on the whole globe. That cannot be right. ;(
I look forward to when I earn enough to buy a helicopter for the SAR helicopter missions. I really like the total piloting challenge of doing those missions. Hopefully, the helicopter game will mature enough by the time I get to where you are to more completly enjoy them.
But the Crazy Eight Ball says, “The outlook doesn’t look good.”
I’ve not started a company yet and I am just concentrating on getting my certs. I have all of the rotorcraft ones that are available and just 3-4 of the heavier aircraft ones left to get.
I’ve been waiting to see if a favourite mission type emerges for me, before setting up my first company and perhaps sadly, the helicopter S&R is the one that is currently “pushing my buttons”. If this carries on though, I might need to reconsider.
Open up the area around the Alps and also the around thenAndes Mountains. Those are places I wanted to fly in 2024, and they have provided the most selection of SAR missions for me.
If one mission is bugged, I can usually select another one in those areas that I can at least fly for the day - I just take the rediculous penalties when assessed to be able to play these missions.
If I don’t get any SAR missions in the Alps, Dolomites etc. tomorrow, I might just have to reinstall again, as that appears to lead to the creation of a far better mix of missions. 
I have the same problem. I managed to finish one helicopter SAR mission but the last to missions were impossible to do. The landing area was full of trees (aka dense forest). Every try to land in the trees ended in a crash.
Please Asobo could you fix this? SAR mission would be great fun without this probem!
It’s probably just stupid AI. I mean, if you were lost and knew that you would probably need to be rescued by helicopter, where are the last two places you’d pitch your tent?
On a stupidly steep slope or among densely-packed trees?
You couldn’t make it up. 
I would never use a owned company to do sar missions. Half the time you try to land between trees it glitches out and crashes you.
Since I last posted, a few updates happened that completely make Helicopter SAR achievable from cockpit view.
*** It is now possible to manage your hover position over the target by using the EFB - HUGE. ***
I am back in the helicopter SAR game! 
As well as construction lift! AWESOME!
Fixed Wing SAR no longer exits for me: Even with Rocks turned off, my gear is almost instantly damaged upon touchdown. Also, the XCub doesn’t stop like a STOL aircraft. It stops like a space shuttle, IMO.
It’s a shame the EFB isn’t useable in VR, unless the aircraft has a cradle somewhere in the cockpit.
Just so that I know how the other half lives, how does the EFB play a role in rescuing an AI muppet who thought it was a really good idea to camp among loads of massively tall trees?
For hoist and construction, the EFB can be zoomed in to .1 nm (or max). The missions now draw a 1 to 2 rotor radius area centered on the target. You can now complete the missions simulating you are a pilot in cockpit view as oppossed to playing a game in 3rd person view - and do it in a controlled manner to consistently achieve “S” ratings.
It works like H145 and similar HSI hover insrumentation, and it is a perect compromise for the limitations a pilot would receive otherwise IRL I believe.
Oddly, the mission to unlock the H125 Hoist missions doesn’t include the feature, so people still have to unlock the Hoist missions with 3rd person view and unwaivering resolve.. (as of 12-16-24)
I can’t remember if the H125 has a holstered EFB, but that sounds like it might be useful.
I take it the missions where you need to land are still going to be impossible?
I take it back. It must be the lifeboat SAR Hoist missions that are devoid of the feature. I just did one of those and it didn’t have the feature.
And just to rub the frustration in a little extra, it looks like nearly all the hoist missions aee ocean rescues. 
(When they are needed for the land missions.)
Well, looks Iike hook and construction then. Oh well.
