It took a huge appetite for risk when Patriarch take over MD without running it through a bankruptcy to fix its capital structure. I know this because I looked at the asset, would have been a bidder on the asset or teamed up with others to bid on the asset. Give the entire Patriarch team credit for stepping up as there is no way I could figure out how to make money on the investment in the way they structured the deal.
At the end of the day, it is a good product with good uses. It is easy to maintain and is monumentally simpler than most other helicopters with similar performance capabilities. There are plenty of PMA parts, repairs and the model 250 is easily maintained by multiple shops both authorized and independent.
Patriarch has a history of buying troubled assets and working to turn them around. They are not afraid to put an asset in bankruptcy if necessary subsequent to purchase. Patriarch bought American La France from Freightliner and roughly two years later put it into bankruptcy.
So we can all speculate as much as we want but a few things are certain.
1) MD or whatever it will be called will be around for a long time. Assuming it is having some financial stress, and we have no actual knowledge that it is or is not, it has several options to include additional capital from its parent, bankruptcy restructuring, additional partner investment or even a sale.
2) People will continue to whine, yes we whine in America, about which is better product and who has better support.
3) Absent someone posting the financials, we have no real idea what is going on.
Lastly, let me comment on Ned from personal experience. In the dark days of MD, I was involved in the rebuilding a 530 and were short one part to finish. Ned got the part when no one else could. He got it by going to Patriarch directly. My experience with Ned is that he knows just about everyone and is willing to help without compensation. A rare characteristic.