The question is - What SAR experience exists in the Irish Air Corps now?
Anyone can call themselves SAR qualified and experienced and a number of 'wide-boys' do exactly that with no real-world experience. Doing a bit of SAR training in nice weather does not make you SAR qualified - it's one of those 'a little knowledge is a dangerous thing' scenarios where the unknown unknowns come and bite you in the a&se because you thought it was all easy-peasy.
Flying an aircraft into the ground on a coastal letdown in dodgy weather is typical of the 'We can do this, we are SAR and anything goes' mentality - amateurish and dangerous.
East Coast irish SAR might not be as challenging as the West Coast on a regular basis but there are plenty of situations where the unwary could easily get caught out.
Modern SAR is no place for amateurs or turf wars.