not being an operator myself, i can't comment on operating costs and tech support. although i have heard all of those comments before.
as one with 3K in 350's and 35 hrs in 407's i can say that if i had the choice of going on a job in either a/c i would choose the 350. the types of jobs i do make the 407's advantage in speed a moot point. the 350 is very comfy for slinging or not (bell seats are garbage), i'm 6' and have no problem seeing out the vert. ref. window. the cockpit is spacious and can accomodate more than a post-it note and pencil. oh yeah, and why is the collective the most tempting thing for front seat pax to grab on to as they are getting in (yes, they have been briefed about keeping their hands to themselves!), and also the first place that the seatbelt disappears underneath when they unstrap in order to disembark. unnerving when doing a toe-in, to say the least.
cargo capacity with pax is also far superior in the 350 with cheeks or without as opposed to the bell that has the same shi++y baggage compartment as the 206 which was designed when? decades ago??
flat floor makes the 350 much easier to clean after you have loads of filthy slashers/treeplanters/surveyors/drillers/jughounds filling it up with as much crud as they can carry on the outside of their boots.
engineers tell me that if they had their druthers, the 350 would be the machine to work on as everything is easy to get to whereas the 407 is a real PITA to get anything done.
even in my limited 407 experience, the demisting system in the 407 has already proven itself to be pretty dismal compared to the 350. this, for those of us who have the luxury of operating out of heated hangars every day might not be much of a concern, but for those of use who work in the bush not being able to see properly is a real drag. apparently, with the demisting system on and a little bit of heat, the 407 will be pushing temp limits pretty quick even in cool conditions.
i have never found the astar to be lacking in build quality, but i am glad that bell managed to finally figure out how to make doors that close properly.
so...it is pretty obvious that i am an astar guy and there must be a reason that (in canada at least) the vast majority of intermediate helicopters are of the 350 series.
cheers
FP