Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is an issue of maintenance, not of age. Many of the parts in the aircraft have been substantially replaced and they are not remotely 20 years old; some of them would be very recent. An annual maintenance is undertaken on all of them. In dealing with the Estimates on this, one cannot be absolutely right in one's predictions because it can vary. A substantial sum can be spent one year and it would need to be considered if such a sum is needed the following year. What arises may also depend on the extent of the usage of the particular aircraft.