Pilot Murray Sarginson was on trial for a crash which occurred near the Lindis Pass on April 30, 2016, killing his passenger and business partner, Liam Edwards (32).
Sarginson was flying a Robinson R22 helicopter when it crashed in foggy conditions. Mr Edwards died soon afterwards and Sarginson was seriously injured.
Sarginson was being prosecuted by the Civil Aviation Authority, which said there were two failures in his actions: he overloaded the helicopter and flew it in poor visibility.
After a re-examination of Sarginson from counsel Colin Withnall QC, three witnesses were called in his defence.
The defendant's son, Cole Sarginson, was questioned in relation to the departure of the helicopter from Athol on the day of the crash, which had come into question a number of times throughout the trial.
Cole Sarginson said he witnessed a "normal" take-off.
He could not be sure how much power the helicopter used but could tell whether the aircraft was struggling or not, he said.
The other witnesses, Bowdy Abernethy and David King, were both employees of Sarginson.
Mr King, of Lumsden, who had worked for Sarginson for five years, said the defendant had a particular focus on health and safety in the workplace.
"Murray's planning on these jobs is pretty detailed - he covers all bases, I'll have to say, especially around health and safety.
"Murray is very very focused on there [being] no incidents," he said.
Judge Bernadette Farnan must decide whether the charges apply in Sarginson's capacity as a director of the company, or as a worker.
She reserved her decision, which is expected to be released later this month.
