Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Clonan for raising this matter. I answer this on behalf of the Minister for Transport, Deputy Ryan, who is unable to attend the Seanad today. As the Senator stated, the Department of Transport, has long exempted certain classes of airspace uses for the payment of en route air navigation charges. This arrangement derives from the exclusion of state aircraft from the scope of the 1944 Chicago Convention, which established the International Civil Aviation Organisations, ICAO. While the application of the exemption from charges is at the discretion of the state concerned, the policy and general practice at international level is to exempt such flights from charges.

Ireland is a member of Eurocontrol, an intergovernmental organisation comprising 41 European states that provides a key forum for co-operation and collaboration between states at a detailed technical level in the provision of air navigation services. Ireland, as a party to Eurocontrol’s multilateral agreement, exempts certain categories of flights such as those which operate under visual flight rules, flights performed by small aircraft, flights performed for the transport of Heads of State and search and rescue flights from paying en route charges. In the case of other categories of flights, such as military flights, training flights, flights performed to test air navigation equipment, and circular flights that depart and land at the same airport, states have the option to exempt such flights from payment of the en route charge. Ireland, in common with the vast majority of Eurocontrol's 41 member states, subscribes to this practice. All Eurocontrol member states exempt military flights to some degree.

The details of the sums paid by the Department to the AirNav Ireland to cover en route exempted military flights was as follows: €1.1 million in 2019; €820,000 in 2020; €910,000 in 2021; €1.1 million in 2022; €1.07 million 2023.

The mechanics of the exemption of certain classes of aircraft from en route charges involves AirNav Ireland recording where such services were provided to these flights, and then applying to the Department of Transport for reimbursement of the costs incurred. I note the Senator referred to the Irish Aviation Authority in the topic heading. However, responsibility for air navigation service provision has passed to AirNav Ireland from 1 May 2023. Consequently, AirNav Ireland has provided and billed for all air navigation services provided after that date. Previous figures would have applied to the Irish Aviation Authority, which is now the regulatory body, rather than the service provider. The exemption applies to charges for communications and navigation but does not cover terminal charges such as landing fees. Consequently, no reimbursement occurs for landing charges.

In the context of neutrality and the effect of the exemption of military air traffic from en route air navigation service charges, the State’s relations with other nations and military matters are the domain of the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Defence. However, it should be noted that Ireland’s exemption for military traffic applies to all military aircraft equally. It is done in the interest of maintaining safe transit of military traffic through our airspace. Ireland occupies a pivotal geographical location between North America and continental Europe and Irish-controlled airspace acts as a gateway for aviation between the two continents. The policy is, therefore, not favourable to one state over another. It is based on generally applicable principles applied by Eurocontrol member states.