Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State is welcome to the House. I think this is the first time I addressed him since he was elevated to ministerial office. I am delighted he is here, and I understand the Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, is unwell with Covid-19 and I wish him well, but it is deeply regrettable the junior Minister at his Department is not here to take this issue.

The Minister of State will be aware of the fact that four brave crew members of the contracted helicopter search and rescue service lost their lives when Rescue 116 crashed at Black Rock, County Mayo, in 2017. He will no doubt be further aware that all four were flying with inaccurate charts, faulty satellite locators and must have been suffering from fatigue due to the demanding 24-hour shift work rosters under which they were operating. Among other things, the Air Accident Investigation Unit report pointed out dysfunctional oversight of search and rescue and alleged safety management failures by the Irish Coast Guard and CHC Ireland, the air crew's employer.

The Air Accident Investigation Unit, on its website, published on 5 November 2021 some 44 safety recommendations and it advised that in all 44 cases, it is still awaiting a response.Like me, I am sure the Minister of State would want to ensure that those who put their lives in peril to serve in what must be the greatest calling, that is, to save human life, should have their safety and working conditions at the highest level of priority for Ministers and their Departments. Some 22 of the recommendations advert specifically to CHC Ireland, the operator. In addition to that, most worrying is the fact that the Air Accident Investigation Unit points out that neither the Irish Coast Guard nor the Department of Transport have any aviation expertise within their staff. The AAIU also points to the 24-hour shift cycle and refers to fatigue and risk management. I believe that the crew of Rescue 116 had been operating for some 16 or 17 hours before being called out. Again, the AAIU refers to the poor level of lighting in the cockpit.

It is no secret that for two and a half years I have been speaking on this issue and on the reckless behaviour that is taking place in search and rescue. I know that one of the helicopters is situated in the Minister of State's constituency and that he has a close affinity with the people who work in that area. It is great that we do. However, these people need more than our congratulations. We need to know that the Department has staff who are capable of overseeing the contract. Right now, the contract for search and rescue is being overseen by a company that is a single operator. It does not inspire confidence.

I brought with me today the recommendations of the Air Accident Investigation Unit. It is no secret that this report took years to get published. The report contains 44 recommendations and months later, the AAIU has said there has been no response to them. Some of the recommendations are simple, administrative matters that need to happen. If the operator is still operating a 24-hour shift roster, why is that the case? On 1 June an instruction came out from the Irish Aviation Authority restricting flying rosters to 12 hours. If a 24-hour roster is still in place, why is that the case? It needs to stop. I can see the Acting Chairman is about to hit the bell so I will take my seat for a moment.