RE: Has anyone noticed this? - Retailers and manufacturers please chime in
I agree with the original poster's sentiments for the most part. But it can be avoided if you do some research. When I was buying my first heli I scoured the web to find information.
There were about four .30 size helis I was interested in, but 3 of them had a lot of complaints about parts availability and cost of parts. I eliminated those choices.
My point being that before you buy something that is bound to need parts you should check around first and make sure you can get the parts so this kind of thing doesn't happen.
Obviously there can still be a problem if the company was well established and parts were easily available and then the company goes under. But then I figure most things have a useful service life and after that I'll be looking at a total replacement rather than repair parts.