Vincent P Martin (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

It would be a safer way forward. If that could be the outcome of this, it would give some comfort in terms of this awful tragedy.

The mission of Rescue 116 on that night was to provide top cover for another helicopter that had been tasked with airlifting a casualty from a fishing vessel. Traditionally, top cover missions have been provided by long range aeroplanes that have greater endurance than rescue helicopters. The role of top cover aircraft is critically dependent on it having significantly greater endurance than rescue helicopter. In the years running up to the loss of Rescue 116, the Air Corps was regularly unable to provide aeroplanes and the Irish Coast Guard and so the private operator decide to initiate a process whereby other helicopters would fulfil this role. The AAIU report clearly questions the efficiency of this approach. The question that must be asked is why the State allowed this approach to proceed. We must ask ourselves why the State allowed a situation to develop whereby the Air Corps was in such crisis it could not regularly provide aeroplanes to assist the Irish Coast Guard.

At the time of the accident, the Irish Coast Guard did not have a safety management system. There were also serious and important weaknesses with aspects of the private helicopter company's safety management system, including in regard to safety reporting, safety meetings and its safety database. How did the State allow this to go unchecked? How could the Irish Coast Guard, the Department of Transport and the Irish Aviation Authority have allowed this situation to arise and continue without correction?

Many questions arise on foot of this report. I can only conclude that the State has been planning, developing and regulating different State aviation services in silos. This must end now. We must do better. We need to learn in a tangible way from tragedies such as that we are discussing. We need a whole-of-government approach to the provision of State aviation services, with a clear regulatory framework. We owe it to our citizens, those who end up in distress and the dedicated responders in our rescue services to ensure that these services are planned, co-ordinated and tasked in a competent and effective manner and that oversight and regulation are robust and proactive. These things we do in order that others may live.

Earlier today, An Taoiseach addressed the Seanad and made reference to the Upper House being a place for independent commentary and constructive criticism, and being less partisan than the Lower House. I commend the Leader, Senator Doherty, on her comments despite being a affiliated to a party in government. Long may it continue that in the Seanad, we call things as they are. We take no pleasure in doing so. As stated by Senator Doherty, it is not a direct criticism of the Minister of State, Deputy Hildegarde Naughten. These are systemic failures that were there long before she took office. We are here to support her and her colleagues in trying to make things better. She can be assured of our support.