&gt; Either way it could have done the skier quite some damage<p>Not either way.<p>If it was the pilot&#x27;s mistake then yes, but if power was lost then the blades would not have had much force anymore. They can cause very serious cuts when propelled, but half a second after losing power they hardly have any momentum left. Tripping the skier over would likely have been the worst of it, if a loss of power was the case.<p>Either way, safeguards may be necessary when flying so close to fragile objects...