Crab,
How wrong you are. The MCA – Maritime Coastguard Agency now have an enormous input towards the approval of a safety regime offshore. Aberdeen MRCC regularly hold meetings with the oil companies to agree and discuss safety and SAR procedures. They run courses on it for oil company staff. The image of the MCA being a grey haired bearded man, smoking a pipe staring out to sea through a telescope is long gone. The MCA has changed, it encompasses several government agencies now and are now responsible for things like pollution, safety offshore, seaworthiness of ships etc.. as well as maritime SAR. You are also forgetting that for this to work an appropriate Command and Control structure needs to be put in place to co-ordinate such SAR assets. In the Netherlands the Dutch Coastguard provide that structure for the L2 out there on behalf of the oil companies. Do you really think that if the UK Coastguard turned round and said ‘we think jigsaw is a bad idea’ that nobody would listen? Of course they’ll have an input!
With regard to the CAA. It is they who grant the dispensations which allow a civilian aircraft to perform SAR Ops. These dispensations have been approved after many years of working with one operator. They are not granted to just anyone and you can’t get them by applying through your local post office. The CAA regularly audit the SAR units to ensure that a proper safety and training regime is in place and that the aircrew are performing the task correctly and within the agreed operational procedures. At least one of their inspectors is an ex military SAR driver so their knowledge on SAR is probably more than you're giving them credit for. The CAA are ultimately answerable to the government if things go badly wrong with any operator that they have given dispensations too. Oh, I think they will give a t*ss! Especially in this blame culture we all live in now.
Winchop,
I don’t hate Bond. I am just slightly alarmed about what I hear about their recruiting. I find it strange that they appear to be ignoring applications from seasoned SAR Commanders from the Coastguard and, from what Crab is saying, the military. In fact, I have heard that the only Coastguard pilot to be interviewed by them was a co-pilot! Why didn’t they interview any of the Commanders that applied (and there were a few)? None of that seems to concur with your previous argument that they would only hire the most experienced crew available and it was you that said that “when I'm sitting in the back fat dumb and happy, I want a good SAR driver up front.” Does this not worry you? If anything I’m fighting your corner on this one!
Oh, and the Nurse Gladys remark wasn’t made by me so you’ll need to redirect your anger elsewhere on that one! No offense taken though… in case you were wondering!
Night Watchman
