IMO the AC squadron has to be Veteran. Whether you take them as Italian Veterans or as the 2nd Household Cavalry from Hell's Highway, the Veteran status makes a big difference for the fragile AC platoons. I had to play Trained in the big game at Endgame and it makes a big difference-more units but VERY fragile.

I just love the flexibility the AC Company gives me-more vehicles, more options. They're great against Infantry companies and can surprisingly hold their own against Tank Companies (as long as you have Air and Fireflies). It is tough to attack a Tank Company with one-in the meeting engagement type scenarios-but not impossible

The 2nd HC is even better because they can shoot and still have the option to retreat and reorganize if needed. Plus they re-roll platoon morale-which lets you be very aggressive. If you mix in your 25 pdrs to make good use of smoke, you can really have some fun.

The downsides are that they are weak against real tanks and anything above an 80mm mortar is going to pry them open like tin cans. You have to be very thoughtful about where you put them every turn-I made some silly mistakes in our big game at Endgame for example. 

Here's my current 2nd HC list (from memory-might be missing something):

Co Staghound, CiC Staghound

2 AC Platoons (2 Daimler 1s and 1 Dingo each)

Heavy AC Platoon (2 AEC IIIs, 1 Dingo)

AC Support Platoon (2 Squads MG, Piat, 3 White Scout Cars)

Guards Infantry Platoon (2 Squads Rifle/MG, Piat, Lt mtr)

Guards Armored Platoon (2 Shermans, 2 Fireflies)

8 25 PDRs

AOP

Limited Typhoon Support

I'm still tweaking it-people have said having a 2nd Dingo in each AC platoon is really useful for example. 

Russ