![](https://www.flyingmag.com/uploads/2021/08/httpswww.flyingmag.comsitesflyingmag.comfilesimport2013sitesallfiles_images201305honolulu-helicopter-thumb.jpg?auto=webp&auto=webp&optimize=high&quality=70&width=1440)
** Photo courtesy of the Honolulu Police
Department**
The 30-year-old pilot of a Robinson R22 said she was surprised when the engine quit at 3,000 feet above a crowded section of Honolulu. But her training took over and she executed a successful autorotation onto Fort Street, lined with apartments and located near a college campus. Pilot Julia Link told reporters, “First I thought it was a joke and then, I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is for real.’”
Photos show the helicopter with its skids separated, both windshields missing and drooping, and bent rotor blades. Link and her 71-year-old male passenger were not seriously injured (he was treated at the scene for a minor head injury), nor was anyone on the ground. The flight, operated by Mauna Loa Helicopters, was reportedly a photo mission.
Link told reporters she was glad everyone walked away alive and there were no injuries.
![Mark Phelps](https://www.flyingmag.com/uploads/2023/08/22-4-Phelps-image-96x96.jpg.webp?auto=webp)
![](https://www.flyingmag.com/uploads/2022/09/Pilot-and-copilot_adobe-stock-rs.jpg?auto=webp&auto=webp&optimize=high&quality=70&width=1440)
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