Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 3 November 2015
880. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of military personnel who have passed through Shannon Airport since the start of 2015 on military and State aircraft, including crew; if any of them were armed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37920/15]
View answerThe Air Navigation (Foreign Military Aircraft) Order 1952 gives the Minister for Foreign Affairs primary responsibility for the regulation of activity by foreign military aircraft in Ireland. Arrangements under which permission is granted for foreign military aircraft to land at Irish airports are governed by strict conditions, including that the aircraft must carry no arms, ammunition or explosives. Following consultation with other relevant Departments, a small number of requests were approved for the carriage of weapons by personal protection officers on VIP flights passing through Shannon in 2015. In examining requests for landings of foreign military aircraft at Shannon Airport, passenger numbers are not routinely sought by my Department. The vast majority of military personnel who transit through Shannon Airport do so on civil aircraft. Under the Air Navigation (Carriage of Munitions of War, Weapons and Dangerous Goods) Order 1973, the carriage of weapons on commercial aircraft through Irish airspace and airports is prohibited unless an exemption has been obtained in advance from the Minister for Transport.
