I'm not involved in this kind of work, but it seems a strange idea on the face of it.
If they're saying two pilots are needed, it wouldn't be the cruise segments that would be critical, it'd be when they were searching / descending / approaching / winching etc - the very times when the crewie is probably going to be vacating the front seat to do his job in the back. Not a great scenario CRM-wise.
If, as someone said above, the crewies are good at flying the aircraft, how does that work, unless they're licenced and receiving instruction, or rated, and employed in a pilot role with the company? Or do they have some exemption allowing them to do this?
Two pilots makes sense, but not if one of them has to stretch him or herself between two sometimes conflicting roles.
Why don't they want two pilots and a crewman full time? Is it the money factor?