I can vouch for the fact that Alan Bristow seriously considered purchasing the BV 234 and that he led a team to Boeing for an in depth assessment. As a hugely experienced test pilot and with the support of gifted engineers, he did not like what he saw. The negotiations that followed were really only ever going one way and that same team then addressed the redesign of the AS 330J Puma with Aerospatiale to incorporate elements of the AS 331, which I saw in a hangar in Marignane, and came up with the AS 332. Mr Bristow saw this option as addressing the wider needs of the oil industry at that time, not merely the Brent field, hence the initial order of 35 aircraft.
It has to be agreed that the BV 234 had its problems at first, having a beer or three with Dave Humble in the Skean Dhu after he had spent all day wearing a rectal thermometer to gain data on his core temperature after prolonged exposure to vibration was only ever a one way conversation!
The BV 234 was limited in speed fairly soon after introduction due to vibration, leading to the story about the official complaint for ungentlemanly conduct prompted by the AS 332 which overtook whilst lowering its undercarriage. The AS 332 was not without its own blemishes but do not let the facts of the 234`s shortcomings be obscured by the partisan bias fuelled by the `Strike of 77` as would appear to be happening in AB`s thinly disguised rant.