Flare,
If the aircraft are maintained within manufactuers spec's and within compliance of all existing regulations and are determined therefore to be airworthy.....what does it matter how many hours the airframe has on it. The dynamic components are all changed by schedule or upon condition so the total hours should mean nothing assuming all the bases have been touched by the operator.
What is your opposition to the "old" girls flogging around the sky?
What is your opinion on overhaul intervals for ageing aircraft? Should the inspection interval be lengthened since the aircraft is a known quantity over the many years it has been operating or should they remain the same or even be shortened due to the build up of stress cracks, corrosion, and general wear and tear from use? Do you consider it a wise use of assets to write off an airframe as a result of neglect when the same airframe could have remained airworthy with a reasonable application of assets over the life of the aircraft?
If you assume the aircraft is approaching 20-22 years of age...and thus has been paid for and depreciated several times including the write off of overhaul costs . Thereby making it a very cheap aircraft to operate based upon it's real cost as compared to the purchase of a new aircraft to replace it, is it not cheaper to properly maintain the old airframe? If you assume you replace the old 212 worth 1.5-1.75 Million USD with a new 412 costing 5.75-6 Million USD.....and of course all those moving components are excess to need upon the purchase of the 412 unless you are willing to sit on them until you need them for the 412, then in real dollars it is easy to see the fallacy of neglecting the aircraft during the overhaul. If you assume the lease cost per month of a and old 212 is about 25,000 USD and a new 412 goes for about 75,000 USD, then you once again can see the extra costs the operator will have to go to when the 212 has to be scrapped.
For my purposes, I would much rather ride around in a brand spanking new 412 with all the IFR goodies than an old rough riding beat up , cobbled up ol' 212....but then I am not having to pay the bills like the boss is! And.....that is probably why we fly the old rat traps at that outfit. It is just a shame they couldn't have been converted to VFR sling load machines or fire fighting machines where cosmetics do not count quite as much as in the offshore market.