Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 8 September 2022
733. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs to total number of United States military aircraft landings at Shannon Airport in each of the years from 1998 to 2021 and date in 2022, in tabular form. [42792/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra734. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the total number of United States military aircraft overflights that were granted in each of the years from 1998 to 2021 and date in 2022, in tabular form. [42793/22]
Amharc ar fhreagra777. Deputy Catherine Connolly asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number of permissions granted for overflights by foreign military aircraft in Irish airspace granted in each of the years 1998 to 2021 and to date in 2022, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [44195/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 733, 734 and 777 together.
The 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 and in Irish airspace. The Order provides that no foreign military aircraft shall fly over, or land in, the State without the express invitation or permission of the Minister. It further provides that the aircraft shall comply with such stipulations as the Minister may make.
Requests for permission for foreign military aircraft to land in or overfly Ireland are routinely required to include confirmation that the aircraft meets specific criteria – namely, that the aircraft is unarmed; that it carries no arms, ammunition or explosives; and that it will not engage in intelligence gathering. Furthermore, applications must also specify that the flights do not form part of a military exercise or operation. These conditions are applied to ensure compatibility with Ireland’s traditional policy of military neutrality. Set out in tabular form are details of permissions granted for overflights by all foreign military aircraft in Irish airspace from 2013 to 2022.
In the case of US military aircraft, under the terms of a specific arrangement dating from 1959, overflights are permitted without prior notification on condition that the aircraft are unarmed, carry only cargo and passengers, and comply with navigational requirements. If a proposed US military overflight does not meet these criteria, advance permission must be requested. The US Embassy submits post-facto notifications of military aircraft overflights to the Department of Foreign Affairs on a monthly basis. Accordingly, the overflight figures for US in the tables below are the total of post-facto notifications of overflights and advance permissions for overflights and landings from 2013 to 2022.
Records prior to 2013 exist, however, consolidated information in tabular form on overflights and landings is not available at the present time. My Department is currently working to analyse these records and will make every effort to disclose these historic statistics where and when possible. We are committed to the highest standards of transparency and I would note in this regard that we are not only working to compile historic data, but have begun proactively publishing information on all overflights and landings on the Department’s website.
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Total Number of Overflights and Landings of Foreign Military Aircraft |
Total Number of Overflights and Landings of United States Military Aircraft |
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|
Year |
Overflights |
Landings |
Overflights |
Landings at Shannon |
|
2013 |
1686 |
646 |
1322 |
471 |
|
2014 |
1295 |
802 |
904 |
695 |
|
2015 |
864 |
696 |
513 |
588 |
|
2016 |
1754 |
746 |
1427 |
592 |
|
2017 |
1749 |
515 |
1420 |
402 |
|
2018 |
1055 |
506 |
724 |
384 |
|
2019 |
1074 |
612 |
734 |
475 |
|
2020 |
702 |
421 |
488 |
341 |
|
2021 |
833 |
402 |
525 |
285 |
|
2022* |
665 |
355 |
395 |
250 |
*The 2022 records cover January through August.
