The air force in Ireland will be more “tech-enabled, enhanced and efficient” going forward, the Defence Forces chief of staff has said.
Lieutenant General Sean Clancy made the comments as the Air Corps conducted test flights of its new C295 maritime surveillance aircraft on Wednesday.
He said the two aircraft were part of the response to growing and more advanced threats operating at sea.
He said: “Everything from cartels trying to find weak spots in terms of people, drugs and trafficking which are counter to our norms and values and threaten the sovereignty of our state and every other state on the western shoreline of Europe, which is where they are probing those soft spots.”
He explained that the Defence Forces had taken a phased approach to introducing the aircraft since obtaining them last year.
“When you have an aircraft with a capability of this magnitude, ultimately this is going to enhance our surveillance capability,” he said.
“It is only part of the totality of the jigsaw that we need to have a really enhanced, comprehensive maritime picture.”
He said the aircraft would act as the “eyes of the State” when it came to intelligence-led operations in the Irish maritime domain, which was 10 times larger than the land area the military was tasked with defending.
Lt Gen Clancy added: “Our maritime domain is third largest in Europe and we have responsibilities.”
He said the aircraft provided a “step-change” in surveillance capabilities, with shallow-water mapping and enhanced data gathering through real-time imaging.
“We have moved with technology, we have been leaders in technology – right from the days we brought in the SAR in the 1960s, to the four-axis autopilot systems we had in the 1980s, to the enhanced capabilities of C235 and now the C295,” he said.
“We are keeping up with capabilities provided by any other state in Europe with the likes of this aircraft.
“You will see a much more tech-enabled, enhanced, efficient and effective (air force), delivering for the State on a continuous 24/7 basis as the Air Corps has always done.”
Asked if he could foresee the Defence Forces pursuing air policing vehicles or fighter jets, Lt Gen Clancy said this would be a decision to be made under the next phase of the military’s “level of ambition” plan for after 2030, based on resourcing at the time.
But he noted that the next C295 to be delivered next year would be a transport aircraft that did not have the surveillance suite.
He said this empty cabin could allow for future “tactical reach”.
