Vecvec etc
Are those "crappy old S61s" the ones with EHSIs, autohover, twin hoists, HUMS, FLIR etc, or something you read about in the Beano? Oh, and the aircraft are servicable and crews come into work to go flying not do groundruns and PLJs.
Isn't a "militant dinosaur" an oxymoron? Compared to CHC, Bristow pilots are not at all militant, although better paid than their military counterparts. Also we don't do detachments to grotty places that Tony Blair sends us to.
Exleckie is right, wake up and smell the coffee. Recently a goverment minister arrived at a Scottish RAF airbase to see the "new" equipment the RAF SAR Sea Kings had just aquired. The "new" equipment, Ultraforce 2/Leo II QWIP FLIR had already been flying on an RAF Bell 412 supplied by FBH for 2 years! (I will give you a clue, the B in FBH stands for Bristow).
As for NVG, FBH now train the RAF on NVG at Shawbury! There are civilian standards for NVG Ops which are in fact higher than the military ones, if the customers wants it (and is prepared to pay) then the civil world can supply it, faster, cheaper and to a higher quality standard.
Vecvec..leave the mess bar and come out and see what the real world does!!!!!!!!!!!