The rescue of a man from near the top of a ridge line on Mount Ruapehu on Sunday was a technically tricky operation.
The man fell from the the Pinnacle Ridge and was suspended by his ropes on a near vertical icy rock face.
Greenlea helicopter pilot Nat Every of Taupo said a 110 foot static line was hung from the chopper with a rescuer attached to it, when he flew in to pick the man up.
He said it's not the kind of thing you'd want to do everyday, but they train for it, and have to have the skills in their repertoire.
The pair was lifted from the cliff face and flown to an staging area above the Whakapapa Ski area.
The man, 62, from Auckland, was subsequently flown down the mountain and taken to Waikato hospital. He is in a stable condition.
The rescue as seen from the helicopter. Photo: SUPPLIED
