Seniortrooper - I'm not sure how you infer from my posts that I am denigrating civsar in UK - that is completely untrue and if you read my earlier posts you will see I highlight the need to be operationally current within UKSAR as a whole, not just the mil bit.
However, I must take issue on the skill-fade issue - it is one thing doing SAR in a rural/coastal enviroment away from busy airspace - it is another matter entirely inland, at night, with poor weather and several radios on the go in a multi agency SAROP - that operational competency fades very quickly and, if you have never been exposed to it before, takes time to cope with if you are to be a truly effective SAR asset.
Frankly I wouldn't hold the interim contract up as a paragon of virtue - not because of the crews (many of whom were doing the job before in Bristows guise anyway and all of whom are still doing an excellent job) but because of the management issues (S-92 without sufficient range when introduced, AW139 STILL without a night overwater winching capability, trying to steamroller Ts and Cs without consultation etc etc).
Whilst you, like many others, claim I should see SAR from a civilian perspective before spouting off - you, like many others, have no knowledge of RAF SAR to back your assertions and so are arguing from a similar standpoint. There are a number of ways to skin a cat but if you want it done properly, take it to a professional cat-skinner
