Air support was requested by Yosemite National Park officials to assist an injured rock climber on Oct. 27.
A 39-year-old man, Vincent Worth, of Colorado, slipped and fell nearly 50 feet off of Mount Watkins before his safety rope caught him.
He suffered serious injuries to his extremities and was unable to repel from the rock face, California Highway Patrol says.
A search-and-rescue helicopter was unable to hover directly over Worth due to the angle of the rock.
But, with just 20 feet of clearance between the granite rock and the helicopter’s rotors, they were able to successfully rescue Worth from the granite slab.