Pat Rabbitte
Ceist:121 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Defence the progress made to date with regard to the implementation of improved safety standards at Baldonnel Aerodrome; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4663/03]
Written Answers. - Defence Forces Safety Standards.
As I have previously stated in the House, the safety of personnel working in the Army, Air Corps and Naval Service is of paramount importance. To this end, funding is, and will continue to be, available where necessary to improve and modernise equipment and procedures to ensure the safety of Defence Forces personnel. Safety standards in the Air Corps, including those at Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, in the first instance are a matter for GOC Air Corps. Since September 2000 an Air Corps flight safety section has operated within the Air Corps reporting directly to the GOC in this regard. The Air Corps flight safety officer and his staff monitor and evaluate all matters relating to flight safety on an ongoing basis. Any issues arising are immediately brought to the attention of the GOC, who will either address the issue immediately or bring the issue to my attention and that of my Department to be resolved.
Following the publication of the report of the air accident investigation unit of the Department of Public Enterprise into the accident at Tramore on 2 July 1999, urgent action was taken by my Department in relation to the implementation of the 25 recommendations contained in it. I would like to inform the House that all these recommendations have been implemented and a final report is being prepared for the air accident investigation unit in this regard. One of the recommendations of the report was that an independent air operations safety audit of the Air Corps should be commissioned. This was done and I received the final report of the consultants involved in July 2001. The consultant's report was examined by both my Department and the military authorities, following which the Air Corps was tasked to take immediate steps towards implementing the recommendations and this it did as a matter of urgency. All 23 recommendations contained in this report have been acted upon. Many of them have ongoing implications and these are monitored on an ongoing basis.