TMT
A copy book rescue by my reckoning. I'm just astounded that you were threatened with a Courts Martial!
I have some 10 years of experience doing SAR around the SW and 14 on the 'King'. I think it would be fair to say that on every SAR mission I flew on, where time was of the essence, we exceeded the calculated VMAX for the day. Big deal. You could push the 'King' all you wanted, but she soon told you 'don't go there'. The torque/ptit/vibration et al, soon tempered your enthusiasm for the task in hand.
The calculations that are done for ROA, PNR, CP, 5%, fuel burn, SSE, etc, etc, at the start of a watch are bog standard, and do not account for the actual 'being there'.
We were there to do a job. A job for which we had been trained. We were fully aware of the implications of breaking an aircraft and so did not stitch an oppo.
Spanish Waltzer: You don't live at the 200 mile limit, do you?
the 3/3A fuel is about 30 minutes more than the 5.
I think I've lost the thread of what I was trying to say, 'cos it's late, but rotary limits do have some flex; just ask an Op Telic Puma operator
TMT, to sum up, I think you can ignore most of this thread and continue to do what you do best. Fly professionally.
BZ
PS. Still throwing dice for the tea?