(Limerick West): I propose to take Questions Nos. 10, 18 and 20 together.
The whole question of search and rescue services is at present the subject matter of a detailed study by the Review Group on Air-Sea Rescue Service under the Chairmanship of the former Garda Commissioner, Mr. Eamonn Doherty. The location of search and rescue helicopters is one of a number of questions which the group will examine and I will consider what action needs to be taken in the light of the recommendations of the group.
Irrespective of where the Air Corps' search and rescue helicopters are based, the amount of cover which they can provide would remain unaltered. The time to reach a particular location would, of course, depend on its distance from base. I am pleased to say that the Air Corps now has sufficient pilots with sufficient experience to undertake night search and rescue operations in the Dauphin helicopter and further pilots are in training. A total of 143 missions, including night missions, have been flown by the Dauphins, as a result of which 102 persons have been rescued.