I flew EC120's for SANParks until January this year,mostly gamecapture , but also hot and heavy during surveys. I managed to fly 2300 hrs on type during the 5 years there.
We found the machine well up to the task at lower density altitudes, but tapering off with an increase in altitude. The B206 lobby that make statements of outperforming the EC120 under the same conditions suffer from selective scan during critical phases of flight. The VEMD never lies.
The SANParks engine was overtemped 2 weeks ago, for the first time during 5300hrs of operation. I will post the stats on total RSA reported overtemps here after I get the gen from Turbomeca.
Quick reference guide to hot start a EC 120:
Battery voltage below 17V
Not paying attention
Not resetting throttle completely if you open it up beyond the "Start"line on CP(linkage play)