M1900
Absolutely agree that we all tend to love what we fly. However, we can all also appreciate the others for what they do best. The Enstrom is a fine piece of kit, arguably it would be better for me than a 206 as I fly two or three up most of the time. However, it won't fit in my hangar and I know the 206 animal now (through painful, bitter experience!). Ditto the 500 and the Gazelle and the R66 - they are great but not for me, for a variety of reasons.
One factor that leads me to the concluion that the 206 is the right machine for Ika, is that he clearly wants to charter it out to recoup some of the costs. It's what I do (though let's not kid ourselves it will ever 'make money') and the JetBanger finds a ready market in the commercial world. The EC120 (and ultimately the R66) will erode this situation - I shied away from calling it an advantage - but the 206 and the R22 are the current machines that will find homes relatively easily with commercial operators.
Oh and ika, be aware that when turbine engineers 'estimate' a cost, they are always being optimistic. Whenever I have had a component that required overhaul, the bill has come in higher. Every time
