Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State is welcome to the House. It is good to see a fellow county woman here. She will be aware that there are 143,000 people involved in the airline industry here. As my colleague, Senator Buttimer, said and as the Minister of State pointed out, the industry is now on its knees. Not unlike Senator Buttimer and, I am sure, others in the House, I have been contacted by everybody from suppliers, technicians, ground staff, airline pilots and travel agents with respect to the industry and where it is going. As we speak, more than 1,200 pilots are grounded with nowhere to go. The remainder of the pilots who are in the air are being paid between 25% and 30% of the normal salary they would expect. To say that they are in serious trouble would be an understatement.

We are now coming into the second summer with travel restrictions. Airline staff and their families are facing continued hardship well into 2022 if we are to look at the timeframe that has been set out by the Government. Every airline pilot who contacted me mentioned Aer Lingus. It is a known fact going back to the good old advertisement from Aer Lingus that when one saw the shamrock in an airport one knew one was home. We simply cannot allow that airline to suffer any more than it is suffering already. As Senator Buttimer said, we have to start working to save that airline. I was speaking to some people last night and the Leader, Senator Doherty, has been more than facilitating in working with members of the pilots' association. I compliment her on that. As the Minister of State knows, for pilots to remain flying, they must have their licence up to date, and because so many are grounded, keeping their licence up to date is going to be a challenge for the future. I ask the Department to consider a scheme whereby pilots who are currently not flying are given time in simulators in order to maintain their licences. Once the industry opens up again, we want these people to be able to fly safely. A figure was quoted to me yesterday that it could cost up to €30,000 for pilots to become re-licensed if they lose their licence as a result of not having flying hours. We have to find a way to ensure all of our pilots are ready to fly.

This does not take away from the fact that being a pilot in the airline industry is without doubt the worst job in Ireland with respect to terms and conditions of employment. There is no permanency, from what I can see, for the majority of pilots flying out of Ireland and, indeed, many Irish pilots are not flying into Ireland at all and, while licensed here in Ireland, they are in bogus self-employment. They are contracted on an individual basis, which is outrageous during a pandemic because it impacts everything, including their pandemic unemployment payment. In addition, pilots have no pensions. This bogus self-employment particularly hits female pilots, who have no maternity leave and no guarantee that once they have had a child, they will get back into the air again, because there are no guaranteed flying hours at the other side of maternity leave. At a time like this, these anomalies are shown up very quickly. It is vital that the Minister of State and the Department look at how people are employed within the airline industry.

In addition to pilots, cabin crew are the key people when it comes to safety on board an aircraft. Again, we have to find some way of bringing cabin crew back in to keep them trained and up to speed because we will, without doubt, start flying again in the very near future. I ask the Minister of State to consider a training scheme that will keep cabin crew up to speed.

The State will have to invest in this because, as Senator Buttimer said, the only way in and out of this country is through aircraft. We have to ensure that cabin crew and pilots, the moment they get the green light, are ready to get back in the air. I ask the Minister of State to consider that.

Everybody who speaks about the vaccine programme has a special reason why certain people should be vaccinated. Pilots are bringing everything into this country and they are bringing many of our exports out. Aidan Flynn of the Freight Transport Association Ireland has made a very strong case to me, which I will forward to the Minister of State, for the vaccination of those pilots who are entering and leaving the State.

As I promised the Leas-Chathaoirleach I would stick to time, I will leave it at that. I thank the Minister of State.