Defence Forces ‘not consulted’ over plan for soldiers to assist at Dublin Airport

The representative body for Defence Forces personnel said it had not been consulted about plans to deploy soldiers to Dublin Airport to help with security queues at busy times.

Concerns that Dublin Airport security officers are at risk from a Covid outbreak prompted DAA, the Dublin Airport operator, to ask the Government to allow it use up to 100 Defence Forces personnel as a short-term backup should this be needed.

The company said on Tuesday that if the Army was called in, soldiers would screen vehicles entering Dublin Airport, freeing up DAA staff who normally do this for redeployment to its terminals’ security lanes.

Kevin Cullinane, DAA’s head of communications, confirmed the airport’s group would cover the cost, including any compensation due to the soldiers. “The terms of that need to be worked out with the Department of Defence,” he said.

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Permanent Defence Forces Other Ranks Representative Association (PDforra) president Mark Keane said its members would “step up to the plate” and provide assistance at Dublin Airport.

He was concerned, however, that his organisation had not been consulted about the details of the support.

[ Defence forces may aid Dublin Airport ]

Although he accepted being deployed was part of army life, the issue in this case had been discussed repeatedly by politicians over the past few months and was not unforeseen, he said, adding Defence personnel should therefore have been consulted about the details of the support.

There was already a shortage of people in the Defence Forces and deploying some to the airport could mean a greater workload for those back at barracks, he said.

Mr Keane also wanted to know if the proposed six-week duration was fluid and what would happen to his members who had their own holiday plans. There could be a domino effect, he warned.

Speaking last week, Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said the Government was prepared to look at all options including deploying the Army to ensure there was no repeat of the chaos at the airport in May that saw more than 1,300 passengers miss their flights.

[ Dublin Airport to remain strained this summer ]

Mr Ryan said he did not want to see a situation where flights had to be cancelled, as had happened in other airports in Europe. That would be a real inconvenience for families hoping to take their first holiday in years.

Average queues on Wednesday morning were for 25 minutes through Dublin Airport Terminal 1 security and 20 minutes through Terminal 2.

On Tuesday there were long queues in the evening time with queues of an hour through security in Terminal 1.