Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)

The Minister's decision is wasting money and putting lives at risk. If there is a 12 hour service in Waterford, then the helicopter will come from elsewhere for the other 12 hours. No matter how fast it is, it will not get five miles off the Waterford coast by the time a helicopter in Waterford could do so.

The south-west coast of the UK is currently served by the AW139 helicopter, which is basically the Air Corps helicopter. If that is good enough for the UK, why is it not good enough for Waterford and for Ireland? Was the Air Corps asked to tender for this process? The Air Corps helicopters can provide a 24 hour service and the same safety that is provided by the British authorities. It is not good enough.

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