Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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409. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the countries that currently use Shannon Airport for Government or military flight use; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45087/14]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Air Navigation (Foreign Military Aircraft) Order 1952 gives the Minister for Foreign Affairs primary responsibility for the regulation of activity by foreign military aircraft in Ireland.

The procedure for seeking permission for the landing of foreign military aircraft at Irish airports is that the Embassy of the country concerned submits a request for permission for each and every landing to my Department. As part of the decision-making process the Department circulates these requests to relevant government Departments and agencies; input received is reflected in the responses issued by my Department.

To date in 2014 permission for the landing of foreign military aircraft at Shannon airport was granted to the following countries:

Argentina

Bahrain

Belgium

Canada

Egypt

France

Italy

Libya

Panama

USA

Arrangements under which permission is granted for foreign military aircraft to land at Irish airports are governed by strict conditions. These include stipulations that the aircraft must be unarmed, carry no arms, ammunition or explosives and must not engage in intelligence gathering, and that the flights in question must not form any part of military exercises or operations.