Archimedes,
Your slight 'itch hath me confuseth.
"The point about XV sqn is that the only way that its plate could have been resurrected in lieu of 45's plate was by taking time spent as a reserve unit into account (it was the equivalent of the SAEOU for ten or fifteen years)"
Er, didn't the TWCU go from 45 to XV when XV got the chop after GW1?
When has XV EVER been non op or a Reserve plate? It's certainly never been an SAOEU equivalent.
45 was dormant for some considerable time after folding up as Canberra outfit in FEAF.
Pray eblighten this confused bod.