What HMS Protector lost when she replaced Endurance

Protector began as a temporary answer to Endurance's loss but became the permanent replacement. She can operate in first-year ice and carry vehicles and containers, yet her weaker ice rating limits penetration and her flight deck lacks a hangar for an embarked helicopter. Vehicles help move stores after arrival, but they do not replace the speed and radius that aviation once provided across the Antarctic operating area. Even one crewed helicopter, supported alongside rotary-wing UAVs, would restore reach for personnel movement and other polar tasks. Her service nevertheless includes support for the search for ARA San Juan and renewed Arctic cooperation with Canadian coast-guard vessels.