MINISTER FOR the Marine Simon Coveney said there may be a case for the Air Corps to resume its search-and-rescue role on a long-term basis.
However, Mr Coveney said he did not think it would be possible on legal grounds to revisit the controversial €500 million contract signed with CHC Helicopters for new search-and-rescue aircraft.
Mr Coveney told The Irish Timesthat CHC Helicopters had been doing a "really good job" for the Irish Coast Guard, and he praised the work of rescue crews in last week's search for the two Skerries fishermen who lost their lives.
However, he said he had raised concerns when in opposition over the decision to exclude the Air Corps from bidding when the new helicopter contract came up.
He believed there was a case for the Air Corps to resume this role, possibly on a shared basis, in the long term, subject to the agreement of Minister for Justice and Defence Alan Shatter. “The first consideration is quality of service, which we have been getting, and secondly value for money,” Mr Coveney emphasised.
He assumed responsibility for search and rescue late last month as part of his attempt to rebuild a new department responsible for marine policy, as well as food and agriculture.
In 2004, the Air Corps was pulled out of search and rescue by the then defence minister Michael Smith, after 40 years.
In a related development, the RNLI says its latest all-weather class of lifeboat will be called the Shannon. It is the first time the name of an Irish river has been used to classify its lifeboats. Previous lifeboat classes have been named after rivers in England, Scotland and Wales. The Shannonclass will have a top speed of 25 knots. Arklow lifeboat operations manager and RNLI honorary life governor Jimmy Tyrell said he was "thrilled with the news" as he has campaigned for many years for an RNLI lifeboat class to be named after an Irish river.
