As I have said before, Bristow hold all the trump cards. There's a reason they are one of the most successful commercial helicopter operators in the world. Anyone who thinks that MT was conceived with the needs of the individual in the military as a priority is sadly deluded. The process that has been put in place has been done to ensure;
1. Continuity of UK SAR during the transition.
2. To enable Bristow to cherry-pick military crews to satisfy their needs.
3. As a management tool for mil manning to have control over exit dates.
It saddens me that those who want to continue doing what they love doing, but as a civilian, are described as going begging 'cap in hand' to Bristow. For those that do I sincerely hope they are not welcomed with that attitude from many of their new compatriots. I suspect that once the disruption and uncertainty of the next few years subsides that it will all work quite nicely.