ever so slight tangent...
can anyone say whether the civilian S-61N's or the current RAF SAR Sea Kings are 'better' for SAR, both military and civil?
i assume that the S-61 can carry more passengers, but what about range, sensors, weather restrictions, availablity, cost or any of the other 99 things i've no knowledge of but which are vital?
i've no real position on privatisation, just the knowledge that PFI tends to be an expensive disaster, however given the pressure on the RAF SH fleet and the fact that we don't do CSAR (in the way the US would understand it) suggests that SAR might be a bit of an expensive Cul-de-Sac in military terms.