On 23 April 1996, the Government approved the establishment of a dedicated Garda air support unit, GASU, as recommended in the report of the interdepartmental group on air support for the Garda Síochána. The service provided through the Garda air support unit which was inaugurated in September 1997 comprises Garda Síochána and Air Corps personnel and operates from Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel. The Garda Síochána is responsible for the operational control and policing functions, while the Air Corps personnel have responsibility for the flying and maintenance functions of the service. Two aircraft are operated by the Air Corps on behalf of the Garda Síochána, one twin engine AS355N Squirrel helicopter and one Defender 4000 fixed wing aircraft. On 10 November 1998, the Government approved the acquisition of a second twin engine helicopter with a 24 hour capability for the GASU. This new helicopter, an EC 135, is due for delivery in the very near future. The Government decided on 20 November 2001 to contract out the piloting and maintenance of the new Garda EC 135 helicopter for a trial period of a least 12 months and the establishment of an interdepartmental committee chaired by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform to facilitate, oversee and assess the trial taking into account existing Air Corps services in this area. This committee has met on two occasions since and the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform is preparing an interim report on matters arising. This decision does not affect the current piloting and maintenance service for existing GASU aircraft which, as stated, is provided at Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel.
With regard to the question of night flying training for Air Corps pilots, on 12 May 1999, during an operation in the Clare-Galway region, the Garda Air Support Unit helicopter inadvertently entered cloud. Contact was lost with the ground target, the mission was aborted and the helicopter proceeded to Shannon Airport.
The incident was the subject of an investigation carried out by the air accident investigation unit of the Department of Public Enterprise. A report was subsequently published and this included a number of recommendations, one of which was that "the Air Corps should suspend GASU night operations in rural areas with immediate effect until an effective programme of extra night flying is completed by Air Corps GASU pilots". This recommendation was implemented.