Defence force personnel will be trained to provide aviation security duties at Dublin Airport.
Cabinet approved the move today and they will be available on stand by to assist the DAA.
Statement re. request from Government for Defence Forces to be on standby to assist DAA with security duties at Dublin Airport.
Agreed on the basis of a clearly defined timeline & non passenger facing role. @defenceforces @IRLDeptDefence https://t.co/2LBx9WcXl5— Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) June 28, 2022
The support will be stood down in August when the busy holiday period has passed.
The DAA says it has confidence in its plan to avoid cutting flights this summer and the army would only be needed in the event of significant Covid-19 absences.
RACO Response to decision to deploy @DefenceForces to Dublin Airport to assist with aviation security duties. pic.twitter.com/nyQhwvJhVi
— RACO (@RACO_DF) June 28, 2022
General Secretary of RACO , the representative body of Defence Force members, Conor King, says they want more clarity on what is expected of their members:
“Once again the defence forces are turned to in the countrys time of need and we’ll undoubtedly step up as the States insurance policy. But there is a concern that this is another example of the defence forces being used as emergency cover to compensate for management decisions in other state bodies. So we need absolute clarity of the type of role our members will be expected to perform, what their working conditions will be and what compensation they will be receiving for their work”
