I think the example of CHF surviving is apposite here; the strongest reason, in capability terms, for retaining CHF is not the pilots on the Sqns (landing a SH on a 20K+ boat in the littoral is not hard - only slightly more difficult in AR5 on NVGs - as proven by several CH47, Lynx and AH crews) but generating seasoned maritime operators to serve on the embarked staffs. The pure skill set of flying from the deck, once trained, is not difficult to maintain. The hard bit is planning the ops and being fully conversant with minutiae of the several unique challenges of working at sea (SHOLs, deck cycles, RAS etc etc). This requires people who go to sea often - ie the RN - to get it right and allows us Crabs to drop in when required to boost the TAG when it needs it. I enjoyed my time embarked, but I wouldn't want to do it all the time.....
Sharkey, bless him, is starting to sound like some AAC aviators from the 1980s with a myopic and increasingly irrelevant take on contemporary Ops....