Sir, - Your edition of November 19th reported the embarrassment of the Minister for Defence and the anger "among the senior ranks of the Defence Forces" at the criticisms of government inaction in the area of maritime search and rescue expressed at an awards ceremony by the officer commanding the element of the Air Corps responsible for this function. You also report the immediate reaction to this criticism by the Defence hierarchy which includes possible "disciplinary action" against the officer in question.
Almost two years have now elapsed since the publication of the long-delayed portion of the report of the Defence Forces Efficiency Audit Group which deals with the Naval Service and Air Corps and which specifically recommended the acquisition of four medium-lift helicopters for, inter alia, maritime search and rescue. Four months have passed since the tragic crash of a Dauphin helicopter at Tramore, with the loss of its entire crew, while returning from a rescue mission for which it was obviously unsuited, underlined the urgency of the acquisition of such equipment.
In this context, the indecent haste with which the Defence authorities, from the Minister down, have reacted to what they consider a disciplinary matter, compared with their inertia in grappling with a matter involving the life and safety of both civilian and service personnel, can only be described as obscene.
The Minister, and by extension the Cabinet, should indeed feel not merely embarrassment but profound shame, while the High Command of the Defence Forces has also little to be proud of in the handling of this matter. By contrast, the officer at the centre of the controversy should be publicly congratulated, decorated and promoted. - Yours, etc., Adrian J. English,
Kilcolman Court, Glenageary, Co Dublin.