Vol. 556 No. 4
47 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Defence the plans he has for the provision of medium lift helicopters for the Air Corps, having regard to his decision announced on 5 July 2002 to cancel the Sikorsky helicopter deal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20665/02]
The decision to cancel the tender competition for the acquisition of medium lift helicopters for the Air Corps last July was taken due to the budgetary constraints, which meant that the level of defence expenditure had to be reduced this year. The decision was extremely difficult for the Minister. He regarded the acquisition of the helicopters for the Air Corps as a priority. He is aware of the huge effort put into the tender process by Air Corps personnel and of their evident disappointment when the decision not to proceed was announced.
When the decision was made, the Minister asked his officials to initiate a review of the provision of helicopter services, in conjunction with the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, to determine how best to meet the State's obligations in search and rescue while taking account of the current financial position. An interdepartmental working group has been established to seek alternative solutions to the funding issue, such as public private partnerships or leasing arrangements, with a view to providing helicopters for the Air Corps by other means. The PPP unit in the Department of Finance is also involved in assessing possible solutions. This work is at an early stage.
The Minister is adamant that there will be long-term involvement by the Air Corps in search and rescue. A decision has been taken in consultation with the Irish Coast Guard to lease a medium lift helicopter for three years. The helicopter will be operated by Air Corps pilots out of Sligo Airport from early next year. Training of Air Corps personnel is well under way on this process. Despite the fact that expenditure programmes have now to be prioritised, the Minister will not allow anything to take precedence over the long-term development of the Air Corps' most important resource, its pilots. The main priority for the Air Corps is the purchase of fixed wing training aircraft.
The tender competition for the acquisition of eight trainer aircraft is going well and the Minister is hopeful that he will be in a position to make a substantive announcement on the award of the contract before the end of the year.
Will the Minister of State agree that this shocking U-turn on the part of the Government will have serious implications for the viability of the Air Corps and for the effectiveness of our search and rescue service? Lives may well be lost as a result of the decision which will jeopardise up to 1,500 jobs at FLS Aerospace in north Dublin, as Sikorsky had agreed to provide significant additional business for the plant as part of the contract process.
Yes, it was a disappointment both for the Air Corps and the Minister that this did not go ahead. Budgetary constraints meant that it was not possible but that does not mean that the medium-lift helicopters will not become available. The process being engaged in now is somewhat different in that, for example, public-private partnerships are being examined. It is a scenario that has worked successfully in other areas and we believe it could be realistic in this case also. We are very confident of the long-term future for the Air Corps and we want to ensure that proper training continues. Pilots are the most important asset of the Air Corps. We are moving to provide fixed-wing training aircraft which is a major requirement. That aircraft, together with the provision of a second Garda helicopter and the Sikorsky-S61 for search and rescue in the north-west bodes well for positive future developments.
The Minister for Transport is ensuring that all airport jobs are protected and we hope that when we go ahead with the provision of extra helicopters under the PPP arrangement it may be possible to provide even greater guarantees in this regard.
I stated that lives may be lost as a result of the decision not to proceed with the Sikorsky contract, but what further cuts does the Government propose to make in this regard? The Minister of State has said that six area units have been disposed of by the Air Corps. Surely it is reasonable to expect that the amount accruing from the sale of such units, including Fitzgerald Camp, Fermoy, in my constituency, is made available for Defence Forces funding?
I reject absolutely and out of hand the Deputy's suggestion that lives are in danger as a result of the decision not to go ahead with the Sikorsky contract. Any such suggestion would only serve to undermine the valuable search and rescue work by helicopter crews based in Dublin, Donegal, Shannon and Waterford. We expect to go ahead with three new helicopters, which will add greatly to that search and rescue work, but that must be done in agreement with the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. It would be wrong to give the impression that people's lives have been put in danger as a result of one contract not going ahead.
The money the Department of Defence obtains from the sale of barracks will of course be invested for the good of the Defence Forces.
