Latest news with #Baldonnel
Irish Times
3 hours ago
- General
- Irish Times
Expert group warned military air traffic control staffing issue would re-emerge
An expert group urged four years ago for a special payment to be given to military air traffic controllers to dissuade them from leaving the Defence Forces for the private sector. It is understood the 2021 report was not acted upon, and the service is now facing a new staffing crisis. The group's report argued that problems with the operation of military air traffic control services would continue to emerge every few years if issues continued to be tackled on an ad hoc basis. The report, drawn up by a joint Department of Defence and Defence Forces group, recommended introducing a service commitment scheme that would boost pay for air traffic control personnel. READ MORE The report said 'stability must be ensured through retaining experience and stopping air traffic service personnel numbers dropping further'. It urged adopting a 'blended approach of incentives and undertakings' to minimise 'premature voluntary retirements'. 'Having a pathway for personnel who complete training to take up a role (and technical pay) specific to their skill set, or the ability to pay qualified controllers the appropriate technical pay after completing their training, would mitigate the impact of gaps within the unit,' the report said. It is understood the 2021 report was not acted upon, and the service is now facing a new staffing crisis. Last week it emerged that an acute shortage of trained air traffic controllers (ATCs) at the Air Corps ' only base at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel, Dublin, is expected to lead to military flight operations being restricted to a five-day-a-week, daytime-only schedule. [ Parlous state of Defence Forces once again laid bare Opens in new window ] The move will have huge implications for rescue, medical and policing services that use the Baldonnel airbase. The 505 Squadron, which is responsible for air traffic control, is supposed to have 21 personnel but in recent years it has been operating at about 50 per cent capacity. Five personnel are due to depart shortly for the private sector, necessitating the move to a reduced schedule, which takes effect from June 7th. The 2021 report recommended reforms to training, recruitment and retention. However, it warned that having non-military personnel run the air traffic service in its entirety or contracting it out to an external provider is 'not an option'. The report said there should be a minimum of 32 personnel in the air traffic control unit. It said personnel undergoing training should have to make a four-year commitment. [ State attempting to reach settlements with Air Corps chemical victims, Tánaiste says Opens in new window ] The Air Corps is responsible for air navigation in airspace designated for use by the Defence Forces. In 2016 the retirement of key personnel led to a restriction on operations. A full 24-hour service was restored in 2021. The joint review group was established to identify options for the long-term sustainability of the air traffic service at Baldonnel. The report said issues related to the air traffic service in the past were 'largely dealt with in an ad hoc manner'. 'Maintaining such an approach will lead to problems continuing or re-emerging from time to time every number of years.' It said the military air traffic service is 'a strategic asset' that ensures air connectivity for the State. 'Casement Aerodrome is the only secure military airfield within the State, and is itself a strategic asset. Military air traffic service plays a vital role in maintaining this capability and in ensuring the security of operations in interactions with other agencies,' the report said.
The Independent
3 days ago
- General
- The Independent
Alleged Kinahan gang crime figure being flown to Ireland after UAE extradition
An alleged senior figure in the Kinahan organised crime group is being flown back to Ireland after being extradited from the United Arab Emirates. It is understood Sean McGovern, who was named in the Special Criminal Court in Dublin as one of the leaders of the Irish criminal organisation, was handed over to gardai in Dubai earlier on Wednesday. McGovern is wanted in Ireland in connection with the murder of Noel Kirwan, who was shot in Dublin in the feud between the Hutch and Kinahan criminal gangs in December 2016, despite having no connections to criminality. He is being transported back to Ireland in an Irish military plan. The flight is required to stop to refuel on the journey and is not expected back in Dublin until late Thursday afternoon. He is expected to be formally arrested when the aircraft lands at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel. It is understood he will be taken from there to the Special Criminal Court in Dublin. McGovern was arrested in the UAE last October after an Interpol red notice was issued. Shortly after his arrest, Ireland finalised an agreement on an extradition treaty with the United Arab Emirates. In 2021, the US authorities imposed sanctions against McGovern and six other alleged senior members of the Kinahan crime gang as part of a bid to target their financial operations.
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Sean McGovern's return from Dubai marks Ireland's highest risk extradition since John Gilligan
Given it is the most significant extradition of an Irish gangland figure for 25 years, the return of Sean McGovern to his native Dublin is expected to involve a big security operation. After arriving from Dubai at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel on an Irish Air Corps aircraft, McGovern is expected be taken immediately under armed escort to the Special Criminal Court to face charges of murder and directing organised crime. The operation to bring him across Dublin, within a tight mobile security cordon, will likely involve a mix of Defence Forces and Garda personnel, most of them armed. The precise details of how he will be moved are tightly guarded, but such escorted journeys usually involve a convoy of vehicles. However, in this case it is possible that at least some of the trip to the Courts of Criminal Justice (CCJ) complex in the north inner city could involve a helicopter flight. READ MORE Should even a portion of the escort be done by road it would involve rolling street closures to ensure the fastest journey time possible and minimise any possible security risk while McGovern is on the move, including any effort to free him. That risk is the prime reason why a helicopter being used to bring him as close as possible to the CCJ has been considered an option during the planning stages. Sean McGovern is expected be taken immediately under armed escort to the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin to face charges of murder and directing organised crime. Photograph: Matt Kavanagh McGovern (39) has been one of a small group at the apex of the Kinahan cartel living openly in Dubai . He would likely serve 30 years in prison if convicted of the Kinahan-Hutch feud murder of Noel Kirwan (62) in 2016. His is the highest risk extradition since John Gilligan was brought back from the UK to Ireland 25 years ago to face charges of murdering journalist Veronica Guerin and drug dealing. Unlike Gilligan's extradition, performed under oft used arrangements between Britain and Ireland, McGovern's journey from Dubai is different. It is a red letter day for Irish policing, the Republic's and UAE's legal systems and the relationship between the State and the Emirate. John Gilligan was brought from the UK to Ireland 25 years ago to face charges of murdering Veronica Guerin and drug dealing. Photograph: Alan Betson There is no extradition treaty between the EU and UAE, which has previously been slow to co-operate with western countries on law enforcement matters. McGovern is the first person ever extradited to Ireland from the UAE and he was also the first member of the Kinahan cartel arrested in Dubai. He was being extradited under a special once-off legal arrangement agreed by authorities in the UAE and Ireland. Since he was arrested at his Dubai home last October, on foot of the extradition request by the Irish authorities, a new extradition agreement has been put in place. However, that treaty, a permanent arrangement, cannot be retrospective. It means it can only be used for cases initiated after it was signed late last year, thus excluding McGovern's case. It has taken a near 10-year diplomatic campaign – undertaken by successive government's and the Garda – to reach this juncture. Former assistant Garda commissioner John O'Driscoll, who died suddenly last year after retiring, was a central player in those efforts. He was crucial to convincing the US to join the international fight against the cartel, which led to financial and travel sanctions being imposed on its leaders in Dubai. The involvement of the US authorities also ramped up pressure on the UAE to co-operate with Ireland. Helen McEntee travelled to Dubai to meet her counterparts while serving as minister for justice. Garda Commissioner Drew Harris has done likewise. When interviewed in Dubai last year by The Irish Times, Mr Harris said he believed the UAE authorities, including Dubai Police, were co-operating fully with him and his colleagues. He insisted that co-operation would lead to firm results. The Kinahans – Christy snr, Daniel and Christopher jnr – were in 2022 named by the US Department of the Treasury as being at the apex of the criminal network and sanctions were put in place against them That first result is the extradition of McGovern, though the bigger prizes – still being worked towards – are charges being approved against, and the extraditions of Christy Kinahan and his sons Daniel and Christopher, who remain headquartered in Dubai. The murder McGovern is charged with, that of Noel Kirwan in December 2016, was regarded as particularly cruel. He was shot six times outside his home in Clondalkin as part of the Kinahan-Hutch feud, even though he was not involved in it or organised crime. Mr Kirwan was pictured at the funeral of feud victim Eddie Hutch in February, 2016, alongside his brother, Gerard Hutch, known as The Monk. Gerard Hutch was named in Criminal Assets Bureau (Cab) evidence to the High Court as the main protagonist in the Kinahan-Hutch feud on the Hutch side. On the other side, Cab told the court, was Daniel Kinahan, Liam Byrne and Freddie Thompson. Byrne and Thompson have run the Kinahan cartel's Irish operation at different times. Noel Kirwan, was shot dead in Dublin in December 2016 The fact Mr Kirwan was spotted at the Hutch funeral was enough for the cartel to target him. As well as being charged with his murder, McGovern is also facing charges of directing organised crime in Dublin. McGovern was a close associate of Liam Byrne and was a member of his gang – the 'Byrne organised crime group' – running the cartel's Irish operation. However, about a decade ago he began rapidly moving up the hierarchy in the cartel and moved to Dubai to effectively act as Daniel Kinahan's day-to-day right hand man. McGovern was wounded in the Kinahan-Hutch feud-related attack at the Regency Hotel, north Dublin, in 2016, and was one of seven men at the apex of the cartel sanctioned by the US authorities in 2022. At the time, he was described by the department of the treasury in the US as 'Daniel Kinahan's advisor and closest confidant'. It further stated that 'evidence indicates that all dealings with Daniel Kinahan go through Sean McGovern'. McGovern, whose house in Crumlin, Dublin, was seized by Cab in 2019, also 'managed communications on behalf of Daniel Kinahan, and he sells multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine', it said.
Irish Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Parlous state of Defence Forces once again laid bare
The parlous state of the Ireland's Defence Forces has again been laid bare by staff shortages leading to a reduction in operations. In January our Crime and Security Correspondent Conor Gallagher reported that one of the Naval Service 's most modern ships has been forced to patrol without a functioning main weapons system. The failing was due to a severe shortage of qualified naval ordnance technicians, which has left the service unable to maintain all its weapons. Previously Gallagher reported that the Naval Service was sending out an average of one ship per day to monitor Ireland's vast territorial waters, despite Government warnings of maritime threats from foreign militaries and organised crime groups. READ MORE In today's lead Gallagher outlines how senior military sources say Irish military flight operations are to move to part-time hours at the Air Corps headquarters and may soon have to cease entirely. The move will have huge implications for rescue, medical and policing services. As it stands, an acute shortage of trained air traffic controllers (ATCs) at the Air Corps's only base at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel, Dublin, is resulting in a move to a five-day-a week, daytime-only flying schedule. This includes flights by the Garda helicopters. The 505 Squadron, which is responsible for air traffic control, is supposed to have 21 personnel but in recent years it has been operating at about 50 per cent capacity. Five personnel are due to depart shortly for the private sector, necessitating the move to a reduced schedule, which takes effect from June 7th. Military sources said if just one or two more ATCs depart, Baldonnel will no longer be able to maintain flight operations. The crisis comes as Tánaiste and Minister for Defence Simon Harris has promised a large investment in the Air Corps, which will soon be renamed the Irish Air Force. This includes the purchase of a military radar system, four new helicopters, one new troop transport aircraft and a complete refurbishment of Baldonnel. Eventually, combat fighter jets will be acquired to patrol Irish skies, Mr Harris has said. The Defence Forces and Department of Defence both said they did not comment on operational issues. The Government does have plans to ramp up Defence spending in the coming years but it is playing catch-up after many years of underinvestment. Independents overboard It was a case of Independents overboard as two Government-supporting TDs voted against the Coalition in favour of a Sinn Féin Bill in support of Palestine. Barry Heneghan of Dublin Bay North and Meath East TD Gillian Toole broke ranks with the other Independents thatsupport the Government in a Dáil vote on Wednesday night. But the Government's majority is not at risk yet as the Dáil still voted by a margin of 87 to 75 against the Opposition party's Bill that sought to curtail Israeli access to sell bonds through the Irish financial system And while Heneghan and Toole did not support the Coalition on this occasion, it does not mean they will not back it (in all likelihood most of the time) in future. As Jack Horgan-Jones and Marie O'Halloran report, Heneghan said he supported the legislation 'because Ireland shouldn't facilitate the sale of bonds that help fund the devastation in Gaza'. However, he also said he is 'fully committed' to the Programme for Government. He added that 'as an Independent TD, I reserve the right to act on matters of conscience'. Heneghan and Toole were part of the Regional Independent Group of TDs which convened around Tipperary North TD Michael Lowry during Programme for Government negotiations. After the negotiations were concluded, Mr Lowry said the group would support the Government 'on good days and bad'. It appears from Henaghan and Toole's votes on Wednesday that this will not always be the case. Their move will likely irritate backbenchers in Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael who might like to break ranks occasionally on unpopular issues but are under the party whip and there are consequences if they do so. But what happened on Wednesday was a demonstration why the two larger parties cast the net so wide in enlisting the support of nine independents during Government formation talks. The non-party TDs can be a wobbly third leg of the stool in Coalitions. Best Reads Political Editor Pat Leahy reports that the State could face financial penalties totalling as much as €28 billion for failing to sufficiently reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, experts say. It comes after and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report showed that Ireland's progress towards the goal of reducing emissions by half is slowing. It will now only achieve reductions of 23 per cent in a best-case scenario. In other environmental news whales have left Cork waters as sprat, their food source, is in short supply, a Cork-based businessman has said after abandoning tours of the waters. Colin Barnes, who ran a whale-watching boat tour company, has been put out of business after the departure of the cetaceans. Katie Mellet has the story . RTÉ were back before an Oireachtas Committee on Wednesday. Current Affairs Editor Arthur Beesley reckons it was a drab sequel to firework show of two years ago starring Ryan Tubridy Miram Lord writes the Montrose chiefs were back for 'another grilling at the media committee barbecue – but where's the beef?' Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar tells Jack Power that the European Union needs to 'grow a bit of backbone' and stand-up to Israel. Harry McGee reports that the non-jury Special Criminal Court and the Offences Against the State Act are set to be repealed after more than 50 years in existence following the acceptance by the Minister for Justice of the recommendations of an expert review group. However, the replacement of the legislation will not mean an end to non-jury courts. Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan said that they remained necessary for certain cases and that had been a recommendation of the Independent Review Group, chaired by Mr Justice Micheal Peart. Playbook Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe is first up in the Dáil taking Parliamentary Questions from 8.47am. Next up to be quizzed by TDs is Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers at 10:23am. Leaders' Questions is at noon. Government business at 1.52pm is statements on flood relief. TDs have an opportunity to raise 'Topical Issues' from 4.17pm. A Labour Party Bill aimed at giving the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission more powers to tackle 'unfair prices' will be debated at 5.17pm. There will be statements on Gaza in the Seanad from 9am. The Committee on Defence and National Security will begin pre-legislative scrutiny of the Government's proposals to scrap the triple-lock on the deployment of Irish soldiers overseas from 9:30am. Representatives of the Arts Council and the National Gallery are expected to be before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) from 10:30am . Expect TDs to delve into issues like the €6.7 million spent by the Arts Council on a new IT system that was eventually abandoned and the separate controversy over the €125,000 x-ray scanner bought by the National Gallery that lay idle for eight years. The full schedule for the Dáil, Seanad and Committees can be found here. 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Irish Times
4 days ago
- General
- Irish Times
Air Corps being cut to part-time hours and may soon cease flying due to manpower crisis
Irish military flight operations are to move to part-time hours at the Air Corps headquarters and may soon have to cease entirely, according to senior military sources. The move will have huge implications for rescue, medical and policing services. As it stands, an acute shortage of trained air traffic controllers (ATCs) at the Air Corps's only base at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel, Dublin, is resulting in moving to a five-day-a week, daytime-only flying schedule. This includes flights by the Garda helicopters. READ MORE The 505 Squadron, which is responsible for air traffic control, is supposed to have 21 personnel but in recent years it has been operating at about 50 per cent capacity. Five personnel are due to depart shortly for the private sector, necessitating the move to a reduced schedule, which takes effect from June 7th. Military sources said if just one or two more ATCs depart, Baldonnel will no longer be able to maintain flight operations. Although the Defence Forces is training junior ATCs, including a group currently studying with a private company in Spain, there will not be enough senior Air Corps instructors to train them on specific Irish systems, sources said. 'Things are on a knife edge. The mood is one of total despair,' said a source. Several official reports have previously warned a full-time air traffic control function in Baldonnel was not sustainable due to ATCs departing for the higher-paid private sector. As recently as 2021, a joint Department of Defence and Defence Forces report said urgent measures were needed to prevent personnel from leaving, including retention payments such as those offered to military pilots. However, these recommendations were not acted on by Government. Attracted by the higher salaries, many Air Corps ATCs have moved to Weston Airport, the private Dublin facility co-owned by billionaire John Collision. [ John Collison and other Weston Airport owners invest €18.9m in expansion Opens in new window ] Weston is moving to 24-hour flight operations due to the stationing of Coast Guard rescue helicopters there. The cessation of 24/7 operations at Baldonnel, which was first reported by the Journal website, will significantly impact several agencies, including the Garda and HSE. In recent weeks, the Garda has been scrambling to make alternative arrangements for its Air Support Unit which operates two helicopters and one surveillance aircraft out of Baldonnel. Garda management are considering basing the unit out of either Weston, Dublin Airport or Cathal Brugha Barracks in Rathmines. The unit has already started conducting some flights out of Weston. At least one of the Air Corps's two maritime patrol aircraft, which were recently acquired for €220 million, may operate out of Shannon Airport under contingency plans. The transfer of operations to private airfields will result in large additional costs, including landing and aircraft parking fees. Military helicopter operations will also be curtailed as will emergency patient transfers that operate out of Baldonnel. However, sources said pre-planned operations would still be able to proceed. The move may also affect the Ministerial Air Transport Service, more commonly known as the Government jet. However, the ageing Learjet is now rarely used by Ministers, who instead use chartered private aircraft for official travel. Flight operations at Baldonnel have been curtailed twice in the last 20 years due to a lack of ATCs. Previously, pilots were brought in to act as temporary ATCs. However, it is understood this is unlikely to happen this time. The crisis comes as Tánaiste and Minister for Defence Simon Harris has promised a large investment in the Air Corps, which will soon be renamed the Irish Air Force. [ Costings sought for massive expansion of Irish military including purchase of fighter jets Opens in new window ] This includes the purchase of a military radar system, four new helicopters, one new troop transport aircraft and a complete refurbishment of Baldonnel. Eventually, combat fighter jets will be acquired to patrol Irish skies, Mr Harris has said. The Defence Forces and Department of Defence both said they did not comment on operational issues.
