John Moloney (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Question 47: To ask the Minister for Defence when he expects the Defence Forces to take delivery of the 12,000 helmets purchased earlier in 2006; his plans to replace the personal body armour currently worn by members of the Defence Forces; if these new purchases will mean the weight of combat order equipment being reduced; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11611/06]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The individual soldier is now required to carry an array of equipment on operational duties. In that regard, one of the essential ongoing equipment acquisition projects relates to the provision of a modern integrated protection and load carrying system for members of the Defence Forces on operational duties. This involves, inter alia, the personal protective equipment consisting of body armour and helmet.

The requirement for new helmets and body armour was driven by the need to provide members of the Defence Forces with the best available protection conducive to their operational deployments both at home and overseas. The critical factors in determining such a requirement were that new helmets and body armour must provide a significant improvement in protection and comfort over the old helmet and body armour, be compatible for operational deployments and, where possible, make savings in weight without compromising protection.

In that regard, a tender competition was held in 2005 for the provision of body armour for the individual soldier. An order has now been placed for 6,000 units for delivery this year. The new body armour provides significantly greater protection, comfort and coverage than the old model as well as a doubling of the range of sizes available. In addition, a separate tender competition for helmets was also held in 2005 for the acquisition of 12,000 helmets. An order has now been placed for the helmets, which will also be delivered this year. The new helmet was selected after an extensive evaluation process. This helmet provides a significant increase in protection, comfort and coverage over the previous model.