The Sultan:
Precedent.
The matter of the S-70 / H-60 ECU lockout, and the hazards thereof for the unwary (with which I am familiar) may be worthy of its own thread. It doesn't belong in this conversation. John D is not trying to start a Bell V Sikorsky thing, and quite frankly I think I speak for all of us when I say none of us participating in this thread wants to go there. This crash, this loss, where the state of the art of rotary wing aviation was in the process of being advanced (and it cost our industry two fine men) is of interest to a great many regardless of favorite model or favorite manufacturer.