A dawn-to-dusk helicopter rescue service for the south-east was inaugurated yesterday when the Air Corps opened a new search-and-rescue (SAR) base at Waterford Airport.
A local man, Capt John O'Keeffe (27), of New Rath, is the pilot of the Alouette 3 helicopter which will cover emergencies along the coast and inland from Wexford to Cork, areas which were previously served from SAR bases at Shannon or Dublin.
Capt O'Keeffe is also the commander of the five-man Air Corps detachment, based locally, which will crew and maintain the helicopter.
The original idea was to station a night-flying Dauphin helicopter at Waterford for 24-hour cover but problems arose with a shortage of Air Corps crew. However, Brig-Gen Pat Cranfield, officer commanding the Air Corps, said yesterday it was intended to upgrade the base equipment to a Dauphin when possible, perhaps within a year.
Brig-Gen Cranfield said the crew looked forward to co-operating with all the agencies active in the south-east, such as the RNLI, inshore rescue units, the fishermen's organisations and the cliff and mountain rescue groups.
The inauguration of the base brings a welcome boost to Waterford Regional Airport, which will provide hangar space, refuelling and catering. The airport, which at present has one scheduled daily flight to London, is seeking to attract new business.
The inaugural Air Corps crew consists of Capt O'Keeffe, winch operator Flight Sgt Dave Carolan, winchman Cpl Gary Povey, and helicopter technicians Sgt Colm O'Connor and Airman Ivan Allen.