Aviation tycoons are high flyers in world of political contacts

Mr Ulick McEvaddy (46) and his brother Desmond (45) are the owners of Omega Air, a company which specialises in a number of aviation activities, including the leasing of old Boeing 707s.

The brothers are also behind Huntstown Air Park, a company seeking to build a £50 million privately owned air terminal at Dublin Airport. They were behind the £14 million Malahide Marina project, in Malahide, Co Dublin. The businessmen come into contact with the most powerful politicians in the Republic during the course of their business and as society hosts. In 1996, the then Taoiseach, Mr John Bruton, was guest of honour at a lavish fundraising lunch for Fine Gael hosted by the McEvaddy brothers.

When their plans for Dublin Airport were rejected in June by An Bord Pleanala, Mr Ulick McEvaddy told The Irish Times that he and his brother were determined to pursue the project. The decision was "only a small skirmish in a bigger battle", he said.

Huntstown had appealed a decision by Fingal County Council, but the appeal was rejected because the Minister for Public Enterprise, Ms O'Rourke, opposed the scheme.

"We knew this was going to take many years, so the decision by An Bord Pleanala will not put us off Aer Rianta will have to be brought kicking and screaming into the era of competition, however long it takes," Mr McEvaddy said.

The brothers plan to build a privately funded passenger terminal on the perimeter of the airport just north of the main runway. When Mr Michael Lowry was Minister for Transport, he said the proposal "should and must receive careful consideration". It was examined by officials in his department but was opposed by Aer Rianta.

The brothers have been in the aviation industry since the late 1970s. Omega Air is involved in the leasing of jets, including Boeing 707s, dating from the 1950s and 1960s and which are no longer in general use in Europe and North America. The company's main business comes from leasing and selling the jets to carriers based in Africa and the Middle East. The US army has bought jets from the company for spare parts.

The brothers threatened in April that Omega would take legal action against the European Union if it goes ahead with plans to ban older aircraft fitted with noise mufflers or "hushkits". A spokesman for Omega said the company had spent $60 million on old Boeing 707s which had subsequently been fitted with hushkits.

The brothers have a 33 per cent interest in Capital Radio Projections, the company which owns the Dublin radio station FM 104. They were part of the unsuccessful Ireland 100 consortium which, along with The Irish Times, Virgin Radio, Downtown Radio and others, bid for the national radio licence won by Today FM.

The McEvaddy brothers spent £3 million between them on house purchases in 1996. When the villa in France where Ms Harney and Mr McCreevy stayed was bought is not known. Mr Desmond Mc Evaddy also has an address on the King's Road, in London.

In May 1996, Mr Desmond Mc Evaddy was one of five bidders for a run-down Edwardian house on Shrewsbury Road, Dublin. He bought the house, Pitcairn, for a then record £1.55 million. The following month, Mr Ulick McEvaddy bought one of Malahide's most impressive residences, Auburn House, on 26 acres, for £1.47 million.

In July, Mr Ulick McEvaddy and his family sold a Georgian house on 12 acres on the Malahide Road, for close to £900,000. The house had an outdoor heated swimming pool and an all-weather tennis court. Before the sale, the McEvaddys hosted a party attended by the top brass from the visiting US aircraft carrier, the JFK, as well Mr Bruton.

Earlier this year, the McEvaddys hosted a ball in their Malahide home in aid of the Shanty Education Project in Tallaght. The guest of honour, Ms Harney, gave away her copy of the Belfast Agreement signed by the main participants, for auction.