*Photograph: John Mangan
AN EXPANSION of the current service of the Irish Coast Guard is to see three aircraft based at Shannon Airport as part of a new contract.
A contract has been signed by the Department of Transport with Bristow Ireland Limited to provide the Irish Coast Guard (IRCG) Search and Rescue Aviation Service, including three aircraft at Shannon Airport.
Under the terms of the ten year contract, the company will operate six specialised SAR-configured AW189 helicopters and two fixed-wing planes 24/7 from four bases across Ireland namely Shannon, Sligo, Waterford and Dublin Weston Airport.
In an expansion to the current service for the Irish Coast Guard, two specialised King Air fixed-wing aircraft will provide operational support from Shannon Airport for search and rescue and environmental monitoring. The fixed-wing element of the service will also provide highly sophisticated aircraft mission management and communications systems in coordination with the helicopter fleet. The fixed-wing aircraft will also be available to provide ‘Top Cover’ support to helicopters engaged in long range medical evacuations.
For the past decade, CHC Ireland has operated the SAR contract but following a competitive tender process, Bristow Ireland Limited was selected, earlier this year, as the preferred bidder for the contract, which is worth around €700 million.
Bristow will begin transitioning to the new contract in the fourth quarter of 2024. Nationwide all-weather 24 hour coverage is to be provided under the contract, 365 days a year. Bristow will create or sustain more than 150 jobs ranging from specialist ground support, engineering, flight operations, and in-country maintenance and support capabilities, ensuring its teams and aircraft stand at full readiness to respond to tasking from the Irish Coast Guard.
There is an option to extend the ten-year contract for an additional three years allowing for a total of thirteen years for these new aviation services. The contract also makes provision for the Air Corps to provide the fixed-wing element of the service after five years.
Commenting following the signing of the contracts, Alan Corbett, Bristow’s Chief Operating Officer, Government Services said: “The entire team at Bristow Ireland Limited is honoured to be chosen to deliver this critical and life-saving public service for the people of Ireland. We will provide a safe, dependable, and innovative service that will deliver world-class search and rescue across the country”.
