Ireland Considers Purchase of AD Fighters
In fairness, he’s been criticised fairly widely, both for interfering in a government area of responsibility and for the comments themselves. He’s a very old school left wing politician who indulges his own views from time to time when he really shouldn’t.
I think the EU should step in - how is it fair in a single market that one economy is able to side-step a considerable portion of national expenditure that other economies have to bear (tongue firmly in cheek, before anybody asks...)
Feel free to take your tongue out of your cheek - you raise a fair point if there was Russian incursions into Irish airspace tomorrow, they’d expect their nearest neighbour to use their expensive assets to intercept, even though they’re happy to stick the boot into that neighbour on any given occasion.
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Feel free to take your tongue out of your cheek - you raise a fair point if there was Russian incursions into Irish airspace tomorrow, they’d expect their nearest neighbour to use their expensive assets to intercept, even though they’re happy to stick the boot into that neighbour on any given occasion.
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So why the coyness? If Ireland is so happy to have a friendly neighbouring state assist with air defence/policing why not just declare it and acknowledge how much they appreciate such effective international cooperation? Could it be because Irish politicians would then be seen as hypocrites when they continually spit bile at the UK?
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So why the coyness? If Ireland is so happy to have a friendly neighbouring state assist with air defence/policing why not just declare it and acknowledge how much they appreciate such effective international cooperation? Could it be because Irish politicians would then be seen as hypocrites when they continually spit bile at the UK?
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Where are you getting that information - they are more than capable of providing the service.
What makes you think they were stolen - as neutral country during the war, the arrangement with the British government was that any aircraft which force landed on the island was kept and the crew returned.
What makes you think they were stolen - as neutral country during the war, the arrangement with the British government was that any aircraft which force landed on the island was kept and the crew returned.
Ireland receives their first C295W
According to Airbus FB, the IAC have received their first C295W
cheers
cheers
rather smart 
Something is better than nothing.................
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Thread Starter
H/T Sir Humphrey…
https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2...npower-crisis/
Naval Service left with two ships to patrol Irish waters due to manpower crisis
Two more Naval Service ships are being withdrawn from active service due to crew shortages, leaving just two vessels to patrol 437,500sq km of Irish waters.
The Irish Times has learned the LÉ James Joyce and the LÉ George Bernard Shaw are being placed in reserve, with their crews being used to help man the Naval Services’ two remaining active vessels, the LÉ William Butler Yeats and the LÉ Samuel Beckett.
The move means Ireland will have fewer ships available to patrol than at any point since the 1970s and will likely raise concerns at national and European Union level about the country’s ability to ensure maritime security, enforce fishery rules and protect infrastructure.
It also raises questions about how the Naval Service will crew two inshore patrol vessels recently purchased second-hand from New Zealand for €26 million. The ships, which are intended to patrol the Irish Sea starting in 2024, arrived last May.
With the latest move, the Naval Service has gone from a fleet of nine active ships to just two in the space of four years.
The news has been met with disappointment and frustration by military representative bodies which have been campaigning for better allowances and conditions to stem the exodus of naval personnel to the private sector.
“This is disappointing but not surprising. It’s an example of the Naval Service cutting its cloth to measure, due to an inability to attract and, more importantly, retain personnel,” said Conor King, general secretary of the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers.
“The reasons for this are well known; failure to implement safe and fair working conditions and failure to pay adequate allowances for hours worked.”
Gerard Guinan, general secretary of the Permanent Defence Force Other Ranks Representative Association said that, while not commenting on operational matters, the Naval Service will likely see near record numbers of personnel departing this year, he said.
Military management has determined the manpower situation is so dire that there are also not enough personnel to carry out onshore security duties around the Naval headquarters in Haulbowline, Co Cork.
The Defence Forces is examining the possibility of asking other nation’s navies to train personnel in an effort to quickly address the crisis. This follows the retention of a maritime recruitment company earlier this year to find personnel globally. This company, however, has warned the Defence Forces the hiring environment is extremely competitive.
The Naval Service has 739 personnel, including 26 in training.
It hopes it can bring crew numbers back up so the Joyce can be put back to sea in December and Shaw at some point in 2024. Another vessel, the LÉ Róisín is also tied up while the LÉ Niamh is undergoing a midlife refit.
The Yeats recently returned from a five week mission in the Mediterranean, where it helped to enforce a United Nations arms embargo on Libya as part of Operation Irini. Part of the reason for taking part in the mission was to drive Naval Service recruitment.
There are provisional plans for another Naval ship to be deployed to Irini next year, sources said, but this will be contingent on personnel numbers.
The Department of Defence said it has been informed the Naval Service is “adopting a three ship posture with immediate effect”. Multiple sources said only two ships will be available for patrol, however.
“This strategic decision has been taken in order to streamline operations, bolster existing capabilities and ensure optimal resource allocation in the Naval Service,” a spokesman said.
The manpower crisis is impacting the entire Defence Forces, forcing military management to consider shuttering other operations. This includes possibly standing down the Fire Service in operation in the Curragh Camp in Co Kildare.
A Defence Forces spokesman said it is “reviewing all of our current operational outputs” to bring the organisation in line with the EU Working Time Directive. Its recommendations will be presented to the Minister for Defence once the review is complete.
https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2...npower-crisis/
Naval Service left with two ships to patrol Irish waters due to manpower crisis
Two more Naval Service ships are being withdrawn from active service due to crew shortages, leaving just two vessels to patrol 437,500sq km of Irish waters.
The Irish Times has learned the LÉ James Joyce and the LÉ George Bernard Shaw are being placed in reserve, with their crews being used to help man the Naval Services’ two remaining active vessels, the LÉ William Butler Yeats and the LÉ Samuel Beckett.
The move means Ireland will have fewer ships available to patrol than at any point since the 1970s and will likely raise concerns at national and European Union level about the country’s ability to ensure maritime security, enforce fishery rules and protect infrastructure.
It also raises questions about how the Naval Service will crew two inshore patrol vessels recently purchased second-hand from New Zealand for €26 million. The ships, which are intended to patrol the Irish Sea starting in 2024, arrived last May.
With the latest move, the Naval Service has gone from a fleet of nine active ships to just two in the space of four years.
The news has been met with disappointment and frustration by military representative bodies which have been campaigning for better allowances and conditions to stem the exodus of naval personnel to the private sector.
“This is disappointing but not surprising. It’s an example of the Naval Service cutting its cloth to measure, due to an inability to attract and, more importantly, retain personnel,” said Conor King, general secretary of the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers.
“The reasons for this are well known; failure to implement safe and fair working conditions and failure to pay adequate allowances for hours worked.”
Gerard Guinan, general secretary of the Permanent Defence Force Other Ranks Representative Association said that, while not commenting on operational matters, the Naval Service will likely see near record numbers of personnel departing this year, he said.
Military management has determined the manpower situation is so dire that there are also not enough personnel to carry out onshore security duties around the Naval headquarters in Haulbowline, Co Cork.
The Defence Forces is examining the possibility of asking other nation’s navies to train personnel in an effort to quickly address the crisis. This follows the retention of a maritime recruitment company earlier this year to find personnel globally. This company, however, has warned the Defence Forces the hiring environment is extremely competitive.
The Naval Service has 739 personnel, including 26 in training.
It hopes it can bring crew numbers back up so the Joyce can be put back to sea in December and Shaw at some point in 2024. Another vessel, the LÉ Róisín is also tied up while the LÉ Niamh is undergoing a midlife refit.
The Yeats recently returned from a five week mission in the Mediterranean, where it helped to enforce a United Nations arms embargo on Libya as part of Operation Irini. Part of the reason for taking part in the mission was to drive Naval Service recruitment.
There are provisional plans for another Naval ship to be deployed to Irini next year, sources said, but this will be contingent on personnel numbers.
The Department of Defence said it has been informed the Naval Service is “adopting a three ship posture with immediate effect”. Multiple sources said only two ships will be available for patrol, however.
“This strategic decision has been taken in order to streamline operations, bolster existing capabilities and ensure optimal resource allocation in the Naval Service,” a spokesman said.
The manpower crisis is impacting the entire Defence Forces, forcing military management to consider shuttering other operations. This includes possibly standing down the Fire Service in operation in the Curragh Camp in Co Kildare.
A Defence Forces spokesman said it is “reviewing all of our current operational outputs” to bring the organisation in line with the EU Working Time Directive. Its recommendations will be presented to the Minister for Defence once the review is complete.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Thread Starter
https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/m...-41288176.html
Ireland's lack of sonar forced British navy to chase Russian sub away from Cork Harbour
The Irish Examiner understands the incident with the Russian submarine occurred directly south of the entrance to Cork Harbour
Ireland's lack of sonar forced British navy to chase Russian sub away from Cork Harbour
The Irish Examiner understands the incident with the Russian submarine occurred directly south of the entrance to Cork Harbour
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Thread Starter
https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/sinn...-embarrassing/
Sinn Féin say Irish reliance on British forces ’embarrassing’
Sinn Féin say Irish reliance on British forces ’embarrassing’
Sinn Féin spokesperson on Foreign Affairs and Defence, Matt Carthy TD, has said that reports of the Royal Navy navy ‘chasing off’ a Russian submarine from undersea cables near Cork harbour represents ‘an embarrassing product of the failure of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil governments to adequately invest in the Irish Defence Forces.
Deputy Carthy criticised the delays in ensuring that the Irish Naval Service vessels have sufficient sonar equipment. Teachta Carthy said:
“Reports that the British navy was forced to ‘chase off’ a Russian submarine positioned directly outside of Cork Harbour represents an embarrassing product of the failure of successive Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil governments to adequately invest in the Irish Defence Forces.
That failure continues. It is simply not good enough that Irish Naval Service vessels do not have sonar equipment. It has been long promised, but as with so many aspects of Defence Forces development progress has been painfully slow.
The Commission on the Defence Forces set out a need for capital expenditure of €246.5 million each year over ten years in order to meet Level of Ambition 2 (LOA2). Last year the government missed that target by €70 million. In Budget 2024, they missed it again, by another €70 million.
The lack of capacity in terms of equipment and personnel within our Defence Forces is a result of the failures of successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments. It has led to the embarrassment of needing other states to inform us as to what is happening in our skies and seas, and it is an insult to the men and women of the Defence Forces.
Sinn Féin wants to build our Defence Forces to protect Irish neutrality and sovereignty; monitor and defend our skies and seas; and safeguard our people from modern threats, including cyber and hybrid attacks.
In our alternative budget for 2024, Sinn Féin committed to deliver the capital funding levels required to achieve LOA2 from next year – that is what is required.
Rather than concentrating on removing the triple-lock neutrality protection, Micheál Martin and government should instead focus on building the capacity of our Defence Forces.”
Deputy Carthy criticised the delays in ensuring that the Irish Naval Service vessels have sufficient sonar equipment. Teachta Carthy said:
“Reports that the British navy was forced to ‘chase off’ a Russian submarine positioned directly outside of Cork Harbour represents an embarrassing product of the failure of successive Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil governments to adequately invest in the Irish Defence Forces.
That failure continues. It is simply not good enough that Irish Naval Service vessels do not have sonar equipment. It has been long promised, but as with so many aspects of Defence Forces development progress has been painfully slow.
The Commission on the Defence Forces set out a need for capital expenditure of €246.5 million each year over ten years in order to meet Level of Ambition 2 (LOA2). Last year the government missed that target by €70 million. In Budget 2024, they missed it again, by another €70 million.
The lack of capacity in terms of equipment and personnel within our Defence Forces is a result of the failures of successive Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments. It has led to the embarrassment of needing other states to inform us as to what is happening in our skies and seas, and it is an insult to the men and women of the Defence Forces.
Sinn Féin wants to build our Defence Forces to protect Irish neutrality and sovereignty; monitor and defend our skies and seas; and safeguard our people from modern threats, including cyber and hybrid attacks.
In our alternative budget for 2024, Sinn Féin committed to deliver the capital funding levels required to achieve LOA2 from next year – that is what is required.
Rather than concentrating on removing the triple-lock neutrality protection, Micheál Martin and government should instead focus on building the capacity of our Defence Forces.”
Excellent. Sinn Fein has many years' experience of building an Army.
so he knows what he's talking about then?