NRDK - you are right to pint out that Stornoway does a sterling job in the mountains at night but I have yet to see a dark and !!!!ty night where not using the goggles improves the situation. The picture might get a bit speckly but it is always better than pitch blackness which is what you get without goggles. If you used NVG in a previous life you would notice a huge improvement with the Gen3 tubes that we have now.
The only time goggles are useless is in twilight, looking into the setting sun - once it is properly dark they beat reversionary(mortal) hands down and before you ask, yes I have done both.
45 hours a month for 8 pilots and 8 rearcrew is less than 3 hours per crewmember per month - if you think that is enough to maintain competence in the wide range of skill sets required for a SAR crew and allow time to train co-pilots up to be captains then fine (personally I don't)- it certainly won't be if NVG for overland tasking is introduced - then your training bill will get closer to ours.