Call me a cynic but the AW Press Release looks like a blatant threat; "
Should the AW189 be selected for the UK SAR-H requirement, all SAR-configured AW189s will be assembled at AgustaWestland’s Yeovil factory". The implication being that if it is not selected then it won't be built at Yeovil.
Still that all fits with the the Coalition Government's latest Stalinist and contradictory pronouncement on "picking winners" in British Industry.
On the other hand the 189 does provide sufficient room for 2 stretchers on the cabin floor with some space to attend the casualties, not something you could do in the 175.
At least the sun shone yesterday for a few hours, nice display by the 175 but wouldn't it have made more sense to incorporate a winching demo rather than just throwing it around the skies?
The Boondoggle continues.
