R22butters, leave it alone on this forum, you’ll only catch grief. I paid my way from the civilian side and learned, instructed, and flew lucrative contracts on the 22. Retired flying Super Pumas and AW139. Would never have happened without a cheap entry, and side-by-side with other professionals found zero difference compared to the crabs of the world that silver-spooned up through the military.
Now my kiwi friends tell me that the reason for the disasterous record in NZ is from a disfunctional regulatory regime. Outside NZ I’ve found their pilots as good as any and better than most. Perhaps KiwiNed can comment on the quality of regulatory oversight in NZ, and its effect on the accident rate.