The real advantage of the raven is the rotor disc stability, which is a direct result of the hydraulic actuators. One advantage of this is the convenience for the pilot in turbulent conditions as the feedback through the cyclic is reduced on the hydraulic models. The Astros are becoming known as the "stick shakers". If you can imagine a rotor blade flying through turbulent air, the the subsequent twisting of the rotor blade is transmitted down through the control rods direct to the cyclic. I've been in hot & heavy conditions in the Kimberly region of north west Australia & nearly had the cyclic ripped from my hands when flying through thermals. In the raven this force is transmitted through the flight controls down to the the point where the vertical swash plate control rod is connected to the hydraulic actuator. At this point the force is absorbed by the hydraulic actuator & transmitted to the airframe instead of the cyclic. Another advantage of the hydraulics is during sling load ops. The rotor disc on a raven is more stable during sling load ops due to the above mentioned aerodynamic forces. This allows a greater load to be lifted of the deck which gives the pilot the few seconds he needs to gain airspeed & translation. On any helicopter every time a cyclic input is made by the pilot in an attempt to keep the machine stable lift is "spilt" out the edge of the rotor disc. Keeping the disc as stable as possible greatly increases the lift available. Every R44 sling load I've done I've been competing against Jetrangers or Squirrels to get the work, so every little bit of lift is food in the family's stomach. I can't supply the figures to back up this statement, but in my experience the machine weight increase due to the hydraulic system is more than compensated by the lift advantage gained by the hydraulic flight controls for OGE ops. The Raven II has a 24Volt electrical system which turned me off. It's hard enough in the bush finding 1 x charged 12 volt battery to get your helicopter going on a cold morning let alone having to find 2! CHOPPERBUG summed it up nicely - the Astro is the work horse of the R44 family, but damn those ravens are nice to fly!!