I found the various posts about overland SAR uneccessarily devisive - some just childish, and many still making assumptions (not surprisingly in the circumstances) about what the SAR-H requirement calls for.
Hitherto (and before the Interim Contract), it is true that the MCA contracts focussed (but by no means exclusively) on delivering martime SAR capability in the UK - but this has not precluded some very effective CG overland missions either, including mountain work in the Outer Hebrides. Given who was paying for the service (DfT/MCA) this should not be surprising to anyone, and it is fair to say that some in the MCA (but by no means all) will have to adjust their thinking once the SAR-H service is fully up and running - that said - so will many in the RAF & RN but from a different angle!
The RAF (and now the RN) introduced a more effective overland capability in the ealry 90s with NVG - and what an improvement in safety and effectiveness that has provided! I for one was never enthusiastic about grobbling up mountain passes in moonlight at very low level - no NVGs, eye balls on stalks and after a dinner on too many carrots! - or plumetting through gaps in clouds to reach rescue locations hoping the Decca Tans was working accurately and that my torch and 50 thou wouldn't fly out the window!! - just too risky at the best of times!
In many ways this SAR NVG capability trod new ground and can be more demanding and exhillarating than that experienced by combat crews on more headline grabbing operations overseas (I have had the pleasure of doing both).
While civil certification of such NVG capability is more problematic than in the military it is not impossible, nor are other effective registration/certification methods for the SAR-H programme. Which is chosen will be seen in due course. However, It is unlikely that any of the SAR-H bidders will not be moving to provide such a capability - or better, given that the new service has to be at least as capable as that provided at present across the UK. The word Harmonisation was chosen very carefully to reflect the need to introduce a common (high standard) of service across the UK and remove the very differences (often cultural and subtle) that many discuss on this site.
Overall though, This improved night capability was introduced in accordance with the RAF's more general responsibility to provide military and civil aeronautical rescue across the UK SRR (land and sea) on behalf of the DfT via the MoD - held formally since 1948. This is often forgotten in the tit for tat debate over civvy or mil capability.
SAR-H capability is not to be "owned" by the CoastGuard - many people seem to assume this - just not so - they are a main stakeholder in SAR-H just as the RAF & RN (via MoD) will continue to be. The programme is jointly "owned" and funded by both the MoD and the DfT (MCA) - their agent is the SAR-H IPT and this is unlikely to change throughout the life of the programme - in so far as 30 year forecasts can be valid. The company that wins will be working closely with the IPT to deliver this harmonised capability under a direct single point of tasking from the UK ARCC. That has to be a great improvement over the arrangements pertaining today - however professional and capable they are at local level at bases and within crews.
Cheers
