I have seen NV equipment used profitably for navigation on dim, hazy, overcast nights. Skies that looked entirely featureless to the naked eye where filled with identifiable stars when a low-light scope was used. Navigation lights on distant ships were not visible in the haze using the Mk1 eyeball but they were obvious in the scope.

I'm not saying that night-vision gear is essential. In many case I suspect people can get along well enough without it considering that NV gear can be expensive, bulky, heavy and it requires you carry batteries to feed it. Given a similar amount of money and weight/bulk allocation I think I could come up with at least a half dozen other things that could be put into a survival kit that are more likely to be immediately useful.

If your travels and habits mean your likely to be at sea at night looking for a particular buoy so you know where to turn; or there is some chance you may be charged with finding lost people at night in a wilderness then NV gear, particularly the near IR which shows body heat, may be just the thing.

It is also handy for figuring out what is thrashing through the brush around your camp without waking the entire camp by putting on a light show. Half the time if you use a flashlight the critter flees before you get a look. Leaving the identification a mystery. With low-light scope identification and observation are easy.

NV gear isn't often vital for most people but in a few situations it can allow you to do difficult things easily and occasionally allows you to accomplish thing that might be impossible otherwise.