Go Back  PPRuNe Forums > Aircrew Forums > Military Aviation
Reload this Page >

Ireland Considers Purchase of AD Fighters

Military Aviation A forum for the professionals who fly military hardware. Also for the backroom boys and girls who support the flying and maintain the equipment, and without whom nothing would ever leave the ground. All armies, navies and air forces of the world equally welcome here.

Ireland Considers Purchase of AD Fighters

Old 28th Jun 2020, 07:32
  #1 (permalink)  
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Peripatetic
Posts: 17,231
Received 1,502 Likes on 679 Posts
Ireland Considers Purchase of AD Fighters

Ireland considers the purchase of air combat interceptors ? Alert 5

Ireland considers the purchase of air combat interceptors

The Irish Defence Forces have published its Equipment Development Plan 2020-24 document and the military is considering the purchase of air combat interceptors. The program is still at pre-planning stage and the consideration will be dependent on additional funding.

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/irel...raft-1.4289801
ORAC is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 08:25
  #2 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 1999
Location: Quite near 'An aerodrome somewhere in England'
Posts: 26,783
Received 257 Likes on 103 Posts
As Ireland's need would be purely defensive and to remain clear of the political consequences of being overtly tied to the UK or US, I would have thought that the natural choice would be to lease a number of Saab Gripens from Sweden, another neutral EU Member State.

Gripen is also cleared against the A310MRTT for AAR, so perhaps Omega Air might consider taking over a couple of Luftwaffe tanker transports when they leave service in the next couple of years? I'm sure Ulick could negotiate a good deal!
BEagle is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 08:39
  #3 (permalink)  
Green Flash
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
I wonder where they would be based? Donegal seems obvious for one but at 4900' is the runway long enough? They'll need to build Q sheds etc etc
 
Old 28th Jun 2020, 08:43
  #4 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Ferrara
Posts: 8,254
Received 329 Likes on 194 Posts
"In 2017, Fianna Fáil Senator Mark Dalynoted in the Dáil that the public would “abhor spending €50 million or €100 million on jets that would have no real value in the long run”."

now that's what I call an optimist................ what would you get for 100 million euros??
Asturias56 is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 09:00
  #5 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Royal Berkshire
Posts: 1,725
Received 76 Likes on 38 Posts
Originally Posted by Green Flash
I wonder where they would be based? Donegal seems obvious for one but at 4900' is the runway long enough? They'll need to build Q sheds etc etc
Knock would be the more logical option I would have thought.....runway is long enough, and not much there other than a airliner recycling/reclamation facility?


Can't see them spending the money though to do this though.......and I'm surprised they even feel the need to bring the subject up?


GeeRam is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 09:08
  #6 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Exit stage right.
Posts: 290
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
It is a no chance.

New Govt just formed which includes the Greens and they know they heading into a huge recession and also Brexit.

A kite is being flown and it will come crashing down as no way €1 billion will be chucked at it.

Republic of Ireland has zero enemies so why spend to enrich lots of middlemen.
racedo is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 09:58
  #7 (permalink)  
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Peripatetic
Posts: 17,231
Received 1,502 Likes on 679 Posts
If they ever got over their irrational rejection of th3 idea they could join NATO and, as with Iceland, the Baltic states, Rumania etc, have a rotating allied fighter detachment holding QRA. Radar and QRA on the periphery are after all, just about the main NATO Taison d’etre. They might even get a rotating detachment of a mobile CRC.

p.s. What’s wrong with Shannon?

Last edited by ORAC; 28th Jun 2020 at 10:12.
ORAC is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 09:59
  #8 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: Central UK
Posts: 1,576
Received 123 Likes on 60 Posts
Er - what's the threat?
meleagertoo is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 10:12
  #9 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jan 2016
Location: Under a tree in the NT
Posts: 148
Received 2 Likes on 1 Post
Originally Posted by meleagertoo
Er - what's the threat?
Maybe they have descided to make a play for the Isle of Man?
NumptyAussie is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 10:17
  #10 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Wilds of Warwickshire
Posts: 240
Received 8 Likes on 6 Posts
Won’t happen

This is just the Air Corps (It’s not an air force) seeing a Brexit related opportunity.
The general public in Ireland is fairly ‘anti’ anything perceived as militaristic. They support the Naval Service because of fisheries protection, S&R etc, but a flight of F16s or similar would go down like a lead balloon.
KiloB is online now  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 10:21
  #11 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: liverpool uk
Age: 67
Posts: 1,338
Received 16 Likes on 5 Posts
They can't even provide night fixed wing aeromedical capability.
air pig is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 10:48
  #12 (permalink)  
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Jul 2000
Location: Peripatetic
Posts: 17,231
Received 1,502 Likes on 679 Posts
a flight of F16s or similar would go down like a lead balloon.
Well being heavier than air, obviously......
ORAC is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 11:19
  #13 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2001
Location: London
Posts: 500
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Asturias56

As a start
https://www.platinumfighters.com/phantom2
Legalapproach is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 12:23
  #14 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: May 2006
Location: Dublin
Posts: 840
Likes: 0
Received 3 Likes on 2 Posts
While it would be great to see the Defence Forces in general and the Air Corps in particular get the funding needed to upgrade and bring it in line with other western counties, the reality is that’s a long way off.

Ireland currently spends just under 0.3% of GDP on defence (The Irish Times, Oct 2019; https://www.irishtimes.com/news/irel...2020-1.4043884 ) . The Army, Naval Service and Air Corps are all reported as under strength (The Irish Examiner, Aug 2019; https://www.irishexaminer.com/breaki...es-946626.html ).

There has been spending recently to upgrade equipment, 4 new vessels for the Naval Service at around €75m per ship, arrived between 2011 & 2018 (increasing the overall fleet size by 1), and planned refitting of the Rósin class vessels at about €250,000 each, however, the service is unable to put one vessel within the fleet to sea due to crew shortages. The Air Corps has 4 PC-12’s ordered (1 has arrived) for ISTAR and support ops costing around €32m, replacing Reims/Cessna 172’s and there’s an expectation that the Casa C235’s will be replaced soon too.

We’ve recently seen Naval Service extending beyond the EEZ, supporting overseas deployment of the Army on UN missions and in the Med as part of the Italian Operation Pontus and the EU Operation Sophia. The Air Corps has also recently started small scale transport ops in support of the Army’s UN operations.

While the PC-9’s were purchased with an eye to being a step to FJ ops, there’s no support infrastructure within the IAC for that, no Air Defence radar for example and the question of where the aircraft and their support services would be based would need to be considered (not much point in them being on the east coast in Casement and having to toodle along sub-sonic from Dublin when trying to intercept a target along the Atlantic seaboard).

Unlike countires such as the UK or US, in Ireland, there's no votes in bigging up the military. The position express by meleagertoo is very commonly held.

I suspect it's unlikely to come to anything

JAS

Last edited by Just a spotter; 28th Jun 2020 at 20:34.
Just a spotter is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 13:51
  #15 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Wherever it is this month
Posts: 1,779
Received 75 Likes on 34 Posts
Originally Posted by Just a spotter
Unlike countires such as the UK or US, in Ireland, there's no votes in bigging up the military.
I think you misstate any minor electoral significance defence *may* have in UK elections. There *might* be votes to be lost by cutting it, but there are certainly none to be gained by bigging it up. I think the distinction is important. It explains why UK defence is vulnerable to mismatches between even status-quo aspirations (protect Army numbers at 82,000; don’t cut any more fast jet squadrons; don’t mothball a carrier) and declining levels of resource spending (which the Treasury hates, preferring to spend what it absolutely has to on much higher electoral priorities like benefits and NHS staff). Topping Defence up to 2% GDP with Treasury-, industry- and voter-friendly capital investment to try to avoid the perception of ‘cuts’ is why we end up with lots of kit and not enough people to use it properly.

Last edited by Easy Street; 28th Jun 2020 at 14:09.
Easy Street is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 14:44
  #16 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Belfast
Posts: 0
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by meleagertoo
Er - what's the threat?
There is no threat really
Except for the Russians might invade Ireland and use it as a staging post to invade the UK like the Germans planned in the war , which is unlikely
I think most of the Irish are willing to have the UK and France defend them when required.
The exception to most Irish would be the IRA , sorry Sinn fein who hate everything thing British and would welcome everyone including the Mysterons if they thought it would further their cause.
So I just think it's one of the election time things to reassure the locals the government cares.

Startledgrapefruit is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 14:46
  #17 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Oct 2018
Location: Ferrara
Posts: 8,254
Received 329 Likes on 194 Posts
Originally Posted by Legalapproach
Yes but................. BuNu 145310 last saw use in September 1964 when the Navy retired their test aircraft. It had completed 461 hours. Never demilled, BuNu 145310 has been under restoration to airworthy condition for the past 10 years
Asturias56 is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 15:05
  #18 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Sep 1998
Location: uk
Posts: 245
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I'm sure I saw a Spitfire across the border in !970 whilst flying a JP5 from Ballykelly.
Busta is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 16:01
  #19 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Belfast
Posts: 0
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Originally Posted by Busta
I'm sure I saw a Spitfire across the border in !970 whilst flying a JP5 from Ballykelly.
Yes
They had a couple "appear" after the war
Incidentally their firs aircraft was exRAF.
Possibly stolen
Startledgrapefruit is offline  
Old 28th Jun 2020, 16:12
  #20 (permalink)  
 
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Exit stage right.
Posts: 290
Likes: 0
Received 2 Likes on 2 Posts
Originally Posted by Startledgrapefruit
Yes
They had a couple "appear" after the war
Incidentally their firs aircraft was exRAF.
Possibly stolen
As they were an Export market for UK Govt they why would they have "Stolen" them ?
Uk sold aircraft to them during WW2.
racedo is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.