It almost makes as much sense as having a second tier of cheap, easy to maintain helicopters to do the simple stuff (even if they're not partially manned by reservists) that allows the complex, expensive top shelf Tigers and MRH-90s to be reserved for the tasks where their capabilities are required.
It makes a lot of sense, however, I am afraid 'Like This Do That' is correct about the attitude of Army brass. Why do we need a full-time regiment of Abrams Tanks that we will probably never deploy?
As a former regular turned reservist and relegated to a non-flying role (although with a regular unit) I can see dozens of opportunities for reservists to fill the gaps and support regular units; particularly for ex regulars or those with specialist experience. It is very, very hard for any unit to gain service air support for Ex or Op in our region these days, and this has a detrimental affect on the capability of our forces as a whole.
Reserve units (with regular cadre) operating third line transport support within our own region and DACC when required would free up the more expensive and complex first/second line assets for 'hotter' operations.
It would also provide a skilled pool of personnel for the ADF to access as required at short notice, and provide both training and operational benefit to units that would otherwise be left with no support.
Too much to say....
As for the MRH, it is still an aircraft in development and there will continue to be teething troubles before and after EIS. It is the same with every new asset. It is, however, a great helicopter and substantial improvement over current equipment. I personally think they got it right with this one.
