Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 22 November 2017
30. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his Department's role in the supervision and oversight of the search and rescue services; and if he is satisfied with the maps and navigational equipment that is provided to these services. [49604/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraWe had the devastating loss of the crew of Rescue 116 earlier this year and I am aware an investigation into that is currently ongoing. Therefore, it would be wholly inappropriate and insensitive of me to comment on that. Will the Minister indicate who has ultimate responsibility for the search and rescue helicopter service?
Under the Irish National Maritime Search and Rescue Framework, SAR framework, which was published in March 2010 by the then Minister for Transport, the Irish Coast Guard, as a division of the my Department, has responsibility for the co-ordination of maritime search and rescue, SAR, emergency response at sea and along the coasts and cliffs of Ireland, and on major inland lakes.
Under the framework, the safety regulation division of the Irish Aviation Authority, IAA, has been assigned responsibility for the regulation and oversight of aircraft operations, including aeronautical search and rescue, within the State. In this context, the IAA issues a national SAR approval to CHCI DAC, that is the company, which is the operator contracted by the Irish Coast Guard to deliver this service. Through this practice, there is a system in place to validate the suitability of the CHCI SAR helicopters, crew, training and operational standards for SAR operations.
The IAA has legal responsibility for validating and approving aeronautical charts for publication, as defined by international standards agreed under the International Civil Aviation Organisation. The authority is a hugely respected organisation within international aviation, and it is subject to regular independent, outside audit.
The authority has advised me that there is no reason whatsoever for the Irish aviation community or emergency services to have any concerns about aeronautical maps and charts. All maps and charts produced meet the highest international standards.
I believe it is important to emphasise, and I know that the Deputy respects this from what he said in introducing his question, that there is an active investigation currently under way into the R116 accident off the Mayo coast which is being conducted by the Air Accident Investigation Unit, AAIU. The AAIU investigates on a wholly independent basis and is charged under domestic law and international obligations with examining all relevant issues it determines are pertinent to the incident it is investigating. While I understand the ongoing public interest in this matter, it is vital that the AAIU is given the time and space to do its work and report on its findings. As the investigation is still ongoing I can say no more about the issues surrounding it. Once the final report issues, all findings and recommendations will be pursued.
I will not refer to the devastating loss of Rescue 116 but the search and rescue service continues to operate. People continue to fly. It appears the Minister is saying that, under the legislation, it is his Department that has the legal responsibility for the search and rescue helicopter service. Will he confirm that by giving a "Yes" or "No" response to that question? Who has legal responsibility today for anybody currently working for the search and rescue service to ensure the equipment used by a crew meets and fulfils the safety needs?
With respect to charts and maps, in the Seanad in July 2017, the Minister said that all maps and charts now meet the highest international standards. Is he satisfied that all maps being used, and which pilots are legally required to use when flying, are up to proper standards?
I will answer the Deputy's second question first. The IAA carries out periodic comprehensive reviews of its NAV charts. The most recent comprehensive review was carried out between October 2016 and May 2017. It involved the Air Corps CHC pilot organisation and its associations. The review involved a series of technical workshops over a number of months attended by over 100 participants. There were 100 recommendations arising from the process and all were incorporated in the current charts which issued in June.
On an ongoing basis, if pilots spot an error in a chart, it should be reported through a dedicated email address at the IAA. This reporting procedure is set out in the charts. The IAA has received no error reports through this system since the new charts issued in June. There is also a separate confidential reporting, separate from the email route. The IAA advises that there have been a couple of such reports since June. These were examined and they did not give rise to any changes. Where an error is reported and considered to represent a safety risk, the IAA immediately issues a note down, which pilots are obliged to check. The IAA has advised me that it has a high level of confidence in its systems around NAV charts, and I have that confidence too.
I want to clear on this. The Minister is happy with the charts and the maps being used by our search and rescue personnel today. That is what he has said on the floor of the Dáil today.
Regarding the search and rescue service, I asked, under the legislation, is it the responsibility of the Minister's Department to ensure that everything is right and proper with the search and rescue services? Is it his Department responsibility to ensure that all the equipment a crew uses meets international best standards? If that is the case, if volunteers or staff notice defects and deficiencies in the service, what is the channel for them to make a complaint and how can we have confidence that their complaint will be dealt with to ensure that all international standards are being adhered to and met?
The position is very clear. The then Minister in 2010 signed off on a framework which was absolutely specific, namely, that the Coast Guard is responsible for all of the regulation around the coast and on the cliffs and the IAA oversees the aeronautical travel that is going on. That could not be clearer, and they are responsible for that. It is an organisation. That is the practice and that has been the practice ever since.
Is that on a legal footing?
Allow the Minister to respond without interruption.
That has been the accepted practice since 2010. The IAA is one of the most respected of the regulators of safety in the world. It was second in Europe last year and has been acknowledged by all the auditors. It is audited in the most stringent way, not only globally or nationally by my Department but also by the European Aviation Safety Agency, EASA, the European safety Organisation. To even question in any way what it is doing is dangerous and perhaps unhelpful in a situation which is extremely fragile and delicate.
I am questioning the legality of it.
