I can agree with most of your response....but at the same time it raises other questions that arose from the
PR program used by the Marines to prove the need for such an expensive machine.
Is not SAR one of the missions the Osprey was advertised as being perfect for?
Is not the Osprey not billed as being the ideal replacement for the Phrog?
Letter of Agreement (LOA) answer to the situation including "State Assets" and civilian EMS helicopters....that will be an interesting solution to the need.
What is the response time for deployment of USCG helicopters to the scene of a crash offshore in the Jet Training areas.....bit of a flog from Elizabeth City is it not? Does New River have a standby SAR aircraft ready to respond to helicopter crashes and Osprey crashes? USCG Savannah operates Dolphins and USCG Elizabeth City operates Jayhawks and C-130's. It would appear to this old Army Pilot a Dolphin falls well short of the needed capability for adequate coverage for any aircraft that carries more than a couple of pilots. Even the downing of an EA-6 would be a stretch in the number of folks under the best of circumstances. If it were an Osprey, Sikorsky, Phrog, or even an old Huey with a load of Pax aboard....the Dolphin just isn't going to cut it.
What is the range of a USCG Dolphin or Jayhawk compared to the Osprey in a SAR configuration? Does the MV-22 carry the Avionics fit to compare with the JayHawk for SAR duties?
The follow-on question is why Cherry Point even has the Phrog doing its duty....as if MCAS Beaufort has done away with its Pedro unit? What makes that base any different?
If the additional USN Squadrons arrive as hoped....would that alter the thinking re using Osprey's for the Pedro Mission? Eight Squadrons is it they are looking at moving to Cherry Point and five to Beaufort? That would be an additional 200 F-35's which is a lot of airplanes!