More than €1 million has been spent by the Department of Defence on repairs for a Garda surveillance aircraft, which is only a small portion of the total amount spent on maintenance, reports The Mirror.
Since 2020, the cost of maintaining the Defender aircraft has been around €200,000 annually.
According to military sources, the aircraft itself could not even be worth €200,000, given the €400,000 sale price that the government’s former Gulfstream jet brought in.
The Defender just made a comeback in October following extensive repair in the UK due to mechanical issues that plagued it in recent years, reports The Mirror.
It had a near-miss early last year when an engine failed at Air Corps headquarters in Baldonnel, Co Dublin, as it prepared to take off.
According to an inquiry report at the time, the breakdown occurred during taxiing and not takeoff, and it was purely coincidental, reports The Mirror.
Between 2020 and 2022, an average of €175,000 was spent annually on maintenance, which has also been increasing. But according to data made public under the Freedom of Information Act, that amount increased to €271,594 last year.
With €235,521 spent in the first 10 months of 2024, the tab for this year may be substantially higher.
The Department of Defence is reviewing the aircraft’s current operation, reports The Mirror.
According to the report, the Pilatus Britten-Norman Defender needed routine maintenance in order to guarantee dependability, safety, and “asset value preservation.”
According to the government, the aircraft was maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s guidelines to guarantee that it was “fully airworthy” and complied with stringent safety standards, reports The Mirror.
“These regulations add significant cost to maintenance and are designed to ensure the safety of passengers and crew,” the statement read, reports The Mirror.
The department added that enquiries about the plane’s present worth and its usage in 2024 were issues for the gardaí.
According to defence sources, the aircraft has barely been utilised this year and no crew is qualified to fly it.
The agency, however, refused to comment, citing “sensitive material” pertaining to Air Corp operations, reports The Mirror.
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