Now there's a gem of a thought Crab!...a ministerial directive to substitute a SAR AW101 instead of either competitors' highly researched value for money platform solutions......"providing high tech employment in the UK in a recession" and avoiding all that "lack of UK helicopters" press coverage (and half the work and all the profits to an Italian owned firm we must not forget).........has it happened before? ---well not quite but something similar ---those of us who were there remember the 1995 SH procurement decision only too well!! - Who wanted 101 then?....So who knows????? Of course if it did it most liklely will lead to a delay in ISD for the SAR-H as the winning bidder grappled with the detailed issues of using the 101 rather than their chosen platform, and given the costs of 101, a bigger bill for the taxpayer at the end of the day - just as with the 1995 decison.....anyone taking bets?