Search and Rescue Center Kinloss moves to Havant

[polestar]

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home ... 1418314933

Can someone explain to me why I shouldn't feel less safe because of this ?

[Storyline]

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home ... 1418314933

Can someone explain to me why I shouldn't feel less safe because of this ?

No

[Nick]

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Two out three Scottish air bases have been cut, the entire maritime patrol fleet has been scrapped and we have the lowest military personnel numbers in Scotland in living memory.

However, they are sending us some submarines. Doesn't that make you feel safe?

[aquaplane]

Safe from who?

As I see it the main problem for Scotland is Westminster.

The military is fluff, forget it. Building ships is for the military is worth money, try to get contracts,

The main problem for Yorkshire and the rest of the industrial north is Westminster, fer fuks sake don't leave us alone.

[polestar]

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Two out three Scottish air bases have been cut, the entire maritime patrol fleet has been scrapped and we have the lowest military personnel numbers in Scotland in living memory.

However, they are sending us some submarines. Doesn't that make you feel safe?

Not really; rather the reverse in fact. The way I phrased my question was an attempt to be fairly non-political. Actually what I feel is outraged -- both by the fact and by the cynical timing of its release.

In the (I hope unlikely) event I require serious rescue I shall feel a lot less safe if the operation is being directed by someone on the south coast of England with zero local knowledge, who just for good measure is reading names off charts in a language he can barely read never mind pronounce correctly.

[Orla]

Will this affect the helicopter rescue service (I thought based at Lossie) which does a huge amount of work all over the Highlands.

[polestar]

Will this affect the helicopter rescue service (I thought based at Lossie) which does a huge amount of work all over the Highlands.

As I understand it "privatised" S&R helios will be based in Scotland but operations will be directed by a new "national" operations center in Havant. The UK government claim this will produce an enhanced service for those in peril. For myself, if I was sitting in a liferaft in any Scottish waters waiting for rescue I'd rather the person in charge was familiar with Scottish coastal conditions and topography -- which in my view means being located here.

[Nick]

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SAR was privatised last year. Bristows supply the choppers from a number of bases, not sure exactly where.

[Orla]

I was involved with Scottish Mountain Rescue (Dundonnell) for a long time. Quite a few people owe their lives to RAF Helicopters being based locally....

[Nick]

I was involved with Scottish Mountain Rescue (Dundonnell) for a long time. Quite a few people owe their lives to RAF Helicopters being based locally....

I think the choppers are based at Sumburgh, Stornoway, Inverness and Prestwick.

I'm not worried about the choppers being able to get to me quickly - assuming they are given the right directions from the control room in the deep South.

I guess this is all part of the 'enhanced devolution' the Vow promised us ? We need control of our own coastguard and SAR.

[Orla]

I guess this is all part of the 'enhanced devolution' the Vow promised us ? We need control of our own coastguard and SAR.

Couldn't agree more...

I feel like we have been played, they must have know for a long time about this

[polestar]

I was involved with Scottish Mountain Rescue (Dundonnell) for a long time. Quite a few people owe their lives to RAF Helicopters being based locally....

We need control of our own coastguard and SAR.

My OP was (selfishly) focussed on maritime incidents, but you are quite correct that probably the main issues will be with mountain rescues. I'm sure that the privatised service personnel are all highly competent -- although I wonder if they will get the same number of air hours as the service guys, or if they will be willing to run matters as close as the military guys sometimes do.

However as Nick says the main issue is direction from the deep south -- even if they relocate a few people from Lossie, the experience will decay quite quickly. We need local control. Indeed if we are all "better together", even if there was an argument for a single national centre, why not in Scotland ?

Bill