Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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1325. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence his plans to equip the Air Corps with fighter jets that are capable of defending Irish airspace; and if he has considered leasing options similar to the Czech-Swedish contract for aircraft (details supplied). [12821/17]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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The principal aim over the lifetime of the White Paper on Defence will be to ensure that the Air Corps can continue to undertake required military operations and to deliver a broad range of air supports to other Government Departments and agencies in line with Memoranda of Understanding and Service Level Agreements.

The future equipment priorities for the Air Corps as set out in the White Paper recognises that there are several new and/or enhanced platforms to be procured for the Air Corps. Future capability requirements for the Air Corps are being considered as part of the capability development and equipment planning priorities process as envisaged in the White Paper. This planning process will define ongoing and future equipment priorities having regard to the evolving security environment and available funding.

In the context of the Air Corps fleet, this will include the replacement of the Cessna fleet with three larger aircraft suitably equipped for Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance tasks. The preparatory work for the tender competition has begun within the Defence organisation, and it is expected that the competition will be initiated shortly.

There are no current plans, however, to upgrade or replace the current fleet of PC-9M aircraft purchased in 2004. The fleet of PC-9M aircraft is expected to fall due for replacement in 2025. The Pilatus PC 9M aircraft were obtained as trainer aircraft for the purpose of training pilots in the Air Corps. It should be noted that a decision was made in 2016 to replace a PC-9M aircraft which was lost in 2009 in a tragic accident. The replacement PC-9M aircraft is scheduled for delivery later this year from Pilatus Aircraft in Switzerland at a cost of €5m plus VAT. It will bring the fleet of PC-9M aircraft up to 8 and will assist in a required increase in pilot training in the Air Corps.

The PC-9M aircraft are capable of being armed and as such have a limited defensive capability. However, these limitations were noted in the White Paper on Defence and the development of a more capable combat/ intercept capability is to be considered in due course as part of the White Paper review process.