Vol. 505 No. 2
41 Mr. Hayes asked the Minister for Defence if he has received the report from the Department of Public Enterprise on the investigation into the accident in Dublin Port during the Tall Ships race; if not, when he will receive this report; the findings of this report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12690/99]
89 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence if he has received the report from the Department of Public Enterprise on the investigation into the accident in Dublin Port during the Tall Ships race; if not, when he will receive this report; the findings of these reports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13365/99]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 41 and 89 together.
The report of the investigation carried out under the Air Navigation (Notification and Investigation of Accidents and Incidents) Regulation 1997 S.I. No. 205 of 1997 into the air accident at Dublin Port, during the Tall Ships Race, was made public by the air accident investigation unit of the Department of Public Enterprise on 19 April 1999. The report has been received in my Department and its conclusions are as follows. The injuries to the members of the Naval Service diving section were caused by the excessive forward speed of the aircraft; the following factors contributed to the accident: lack of aircrew experience, particularly commander's experience, in this type of operation; lack of planning, rehearsal and aircrew training for the demonstration; lack of laid down, agreed and approved procedures for dropping personnel from the helicopter; lack of management involvement and supervision, on the part of the Naval Service and the contractor, display pressure on participants; the failure to appoint an effective safety co-ordinator for the demonstration and the helicopter jumping techniques used by the Naval Service.
Following receipt of the report, I asked the Chief of Staff to have the report's safety recommendations in so far as they pertain to the Defence Forces implemented. To this end, standard operating procedures for future operations will be drawn up, taking into account the findings and recommendations of the report. Until such time as these procedures are in place, no further exercises of this nature involving Defence Forces personnel will be undertaken.
