Crab,
I think you missed my point. I'm not questioning the standard of Operating within the RAF SAR Force, just the way it has been implemented and managed in recent years. Those within RAF SAR who have done nothing else are blind to just what a cumbersome beast it has evolved into, to the point where the higher echelons (military and government) considered it no longer viable in it's current format. The crux of my post was that over 2 years for an experienced rotary pilot to convert to SAR and achieve captaincy is endemic of a system that is over-egging itself.