Former Air Corps pilot: I suffered discrimination over my gender

A former Air Corps pilot has taken a High Court action over alleged gender discrimination and victimisation.

Amelia McKeown, a qualified pilot and former officer of the Defence Forces, claimed that she was suspended after complaining that she was being treated less favourably than her male colleagues.

Judge Rory Mulcahy said she had been based at Casement Aerodrome in Dublin.

He said she had resigned from her position in June 2015 and that at the time of her resignation she had been suspended from flying duties.

Judge Mulcahy added: ‘The circumstances surrounding that suspension are at the heart of these proceedings.’

He continued: ‘In very brief terms, it appears that the plaintiff had raised an issue with her superior officer in respect of being treated less favourably than her male colleagues.

At that time, it seems, she was the only female Air Corps pilot. Her suspension followed shortly after she raised this issue, and the plaintiff claims that the suspension amounted to gender discrimination and victimisation.

Judge Mulcahy also said that Ms McKeown sought a declaration that the suspension was not valid and that the decision to suspend her from flying duties was arbitrary, beyond the defendants’ legal powers, void and of no effect.

She has claimed that the existence of the suspension on her record has continuing impacts on her ability to earn a living as a pilot.

Ms McKeown alleged that the decision to suspend her from flying duties amounted to victimisation contrary to section 74 of the Employment Equality Act.

She has claimed damages for breaches of her contractual right to equal treatment and for gender discrimination and/ or victimisation.

The judge said the defendants in the case – the Minister for Defence and the State – had denied all her claims.

They said her suspension, or ‘withdrawal’, from flying duties was not motivated by gender or in response to her previous complaint.

The case came before Judge Mulcahy for a pretrial issue to be resolved and no further background concerning Ms McKeown’s suspension was given in his ruling.

He said the defendants asserted the case should have been taken to the Workplace Relations Commission or the Circuit Court, rather than the High Court.

The defendants also sought a preliminary ruling concerning issues relating to her contract of employment and whether it included an implied right to gender equality, he said.

They questioned whether European law gave rise to an independent cause of action against them, for damages for breach of an alleged implied contractual right to gender equality.

They also queried whether her claim, which was initiated in July 2019, was statute barred for having been taken too late, according to the terms of the Employment Equality Act.

Ms McKeown alleged that the preliminary hearing was intended to delay the main proceedings, a claim that the defendants vehemently denied. She said she had consented in October 2024 to the preliminary hearing but only in an attempt to expedite the case.

Judge Mulcahy said it was understandable that Ms McKeown had done so in her anxiety to progress the case.

However, in this case, he said it was unfortunate, as had the preliminary hearing application been contested, it would have been refused by a court.

‘It has not, and never could have, resulted in a saving of time and costs. On the contrary, both have almost certainly been increased,’ he said. ‘The effect of this application has been to delay from coming to trial proceedings which relate to events which happened a decade and more ago’.

Read the full story by Helen Bruce on Extra.ie

https://extra.ie/2025/04/01/news/courts/air-corps-discrimination

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Delay – Deny – Die

110 Untimely* deaths recorded in Irish Air Corps toxic chemical exposure tragedy!

Untimely* deaths of serving & former Irish Air Corps personnel

- - 110 verified deaths have occurred in total since 1980
  - 97 of these deaths have occurred since 2000
  - 71 of these deaths have occurred since 2010

We chose the 1st of January 1980 as an arbitrary date to start counting deaths from. Obvious earlier deaths are much more difficult to discover but either the rate of death is accelerating or we are missing many deaths from previous decades or possibly both.

- - 50 further deaths since a protected disclosure was made to to Simon Coveney as Minister for Defence in December 2015
  - 37 further deaths since a group of survivors met with Micheal Martin & Lisa Chambers in Leinster House on 20th June 2017.
  - 18 further deaths since a copy of the ACCAS list of demands were handed to Simon Harris on the 17th of November 2018 at the Fine Gael National Conference, he was Minister for Health at the time.

Most Significant Causes of Death

Cause	Air Corps Cohort	Ireland
Cancer	41%	TBA
Cardiac	30%	TBA
Suicide	15%	TBA
Male Average Age of Death	53 years	80 years

*We record untimely as dying at or before age 66 (civilian pension age), average age of death is 53 years. We are counting deaths from medical reasons & suicide, we are not counting accidental deaths nor murder.

We are not stating that every single death is directly due to chemical exposure but many personnel who did not handle chemicals directly were unknowingly exposed due to proximity to contaminated work locations.

Dáil Éireann Priorty Questions 26/02/25 – Air Corps – Health Issues Due to Hazardous Chemicals

Watch Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire TD, the Sinn Fein Spokesperson for Defence, ask Tánaiste & Minister for Defence Simon Harris to discuss health and safety measures in the Air Corps; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Transcript

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South-Central, Sinn Féin)

Question: 6. Deputy Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence to discuss health and safety measures in the Air Corps; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [6440/25]

The Tánaiste will be aware of a recent settlement for Mr. Gary Coll of €2 million, without liability, after he lodged proceedings regarding exposure to dangerous chemicals while working in the Air Corps. I do not wish to discuss any case before the courts. Many people who are affected do not want to have to go to court. However, as a matter of policy, the Department of Defence has a responsibility to ensure that issues regarding former Defence Forces personnel are addressed, particularly if their health has been compromised. The Tánaiste will be aware of the organisation, Air Corps Chemical Abuse Survivors, ACCAS, as I sent him the group’s demands last night. Will he introduce measures to ensure the mental care of those affected?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

There is often time for argy-bargy in the House but I want to acknowledge the constructive way the Deputy has engaged with me and my office in passing on the views and concerns of ACCAS. I will endeavour to also engage on this constructively in return. The health and well-being of the men and women working in the Air Corps and the wider Defence Forces is of the utmost priority for me, both as Tánaiste and Minister for Defence. I take my responsibility to those who commit to military service to the State very seriously indeed and I know the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces and the Secretary General of my Department are with me on this position.

As Deputy Ó Laoghaire is no doubt aware, a number of cases are before the courts alleging historical exposure to toxic chemicals in the Air Corps. As Members of this House, we must respect, and we are respecting, the separation of powers and the constitutional independence of the courts. I know we are not engaging in commentary or debate that may encroach on this independence or, indeed, prejudice a fair hearing.

As Deputy Ó Laoghaire is aware, the HSA has overall responsibility for the administration and enforcement of health and safety at work in Ireland. It monitors compliance with legislation at the workplace and can take enforcement action up to and including prosecutions. The HSA carried out inspections of the Air Corps in 2016, and in October of that year issued a detailed letter to the Air Corps setting out a list of safety measures which required attention to improve the standards in place. The Air Corps engaged with the HSA and set out in detail the response being implemented. Upon completion of the improvement plan the HSA closed its investigation.

Arising from matters contained in the report of the independent review group, the HSA completed inspections of a number of Defence Force installations at the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024. This included an inspection of Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnell. The Defence Forces prepared an action plan to address the issues outlined in the report. The HSA subsequently conducted follow-up inspections and noted ongoing improvements. The Defence Forces are committed to complying with health and safety legislation and ensuring that the best standards are adhered to. The Deputy will appreciate that as litigation is ongoing, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further. It is important for me to say that separate and distinct from the ongoing litigation, the Defence Forces tribunal of inquiry will investigate the response to complaints made.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South-Central, Sinn Féin)

It is for this reason that I communicated with the Tánaiste last night. It is important that ongoing monitoring is happening but my primary concern relates to the issues that have arisen over the past 20 or 30 years. For many years personnel in the Air Corps, particularly those in the repair shop, were exposed to very dangerous chemicals. Despite this, there were no meaningful precautions in terms of health and safety until very recent years. In the meantime, hundreds of personnel were exposed. According to ACCAS it has identified 97 untimely deaths since 2000 of Air Corps personnel that may potentially be connected. I am not sure whether the Tánaiste saw the “Prime Time” segment on this, in which Paul Flynn was interviewed from his hospital bed. Some of the people affected by this are very ill. Others have passed away. This is a matter of the gravest seriousness. We know this issue is not unique to Ireland. In Australia there was SHOAMP, which was the study of health outcomes in aircraft maintenance personnel. Will the Tánaiste put in place a similar model to assess the health of the former personnel?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

I want to reflect on what Deputy Ó Laoghaire has said to me today, and what he conveyed to me by email on behalf of ACCAS last night. I say this without prejudice or conflation with any other ongoing issues, be they issues before the courts or issues that will rightly be examined by the tribunal in terms of how complaints are handled. The point Deputy Ó Laoghaire is making is that regardless of both of these facts, which are important issues, there are people in Ireland clearly presenting with health needs. Deputy Ó Laoghaire is asking me whether more can be done in the here and now to try to recognise this and respond to those health needs and health concerns. On foot of his constructive engagement with me, and the correspondence he has sent to me, I have asked the officials to give consideration to these matters and advise me on it. I am happy to revert to Deputy Ó Laoghaire in due course.

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South-Central, Sinn Féin)

I appreciate the fact the Tánaiste will reflect on it. He mentioned the tribunal. I would make the point, and the Tánaiste’s comments reflect that he may be aware of this, the tribunal only deals with the handling of complaints rather than the substance of complaints.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

Yes

Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South-Central, Sinn Féin)

Therefore, that will not be anywhere near adequate. What ACCAS has demanded is to ensure medical care is provided as well as an assessment to identify what were the implications for health outcomes. There is also a need for a statutory investigation of some form, given the role of the State Claims Agency in failing to alert the HSA of ongoing failings when known. It should go without saying these are personnel who were part of the Defence Forces. They gave their careers and long parts of their lives to serve the State. If their health is now profoundly compromised the State has a responsibility to them. The Tánaiste says he will go away and consider it, and I appreciate this. Will he also meet those affected, ACCAS and any other organisation?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)

I will take advice on this. Generally I like to engage in politics and in public life. I will take advice on this because I am conscious of being a defendant in legal proceedings. I will check this, and if it is possible to find a mechanism or a way to do this I am certainly open to it. I am very conscious of the sensitivities around this and the realities for people’s health and lives regardless of where blame or liability lies. That is for others to determine. I am conscious of the real living impact that people who are speaking about their cases have very clearly told us and showed us. There have been occasions in this country when, separate and distinct to issues of courts and liability and without prejudice to any of them, addressing the health needs of an individual group is something that can be given consideration. I am trying to look at this constructively, having only taken up this post a few weeks ago. Deputy Ó Laoghaire has engaged constructively with me on this and I thank him for it. I am happy to come back to him on this directly.

*****

Almost 8 years ago, when he was Minister for Health, Simon Harris met with an ACCAS representative on the margins of the Fine Gael National Conference in November 2018.

At this brief meeting Minister Harris was presented with a physical copy of our list of fair demands and he urged us to contact his office the following Monday to arrange a formal meeting.

This offer of a meeting was immediately reneged upon by his office.

Delay – Deny – Die

Ex-Air Corps members demand ‘truth’ after €2m chemicals case

Despite a promise of justice, Air Corps chemical exposure survivors say the Irish State continues to deny and delay accountability

A former member of the Defence Forces who says his health has been destroyed by exposure to dangerous chemicals during his service has called for the Government to “let the truth come out”.

The State agreed last week to pay €2m to Gary Coll, 51, to settle a legal case taken by him in relation to his claims, without accepting liability.

Mr Coll served as an aviation technician with the Irish Air Corps in Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, between 1991 and 1997.

His case is the first of ten which have been taken by former members in relation to what they say was the failure by the State to protect them from exposure to dangerous chemicals.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Upfront with Katie Hannon, Mr Coll said the State is “hiding behind the State Claims Agency, hiding behind the Courts.”

“The minister stands up and says he can’t look at a health and safety issue because he has to wait for the go-ahead from the State Claims Agency, or the Courts? No. It’s a cop-out to hide behind the court cases,” he said.

Mr Coll says he now suffers from chronic fatigue, has issues with his heart, breathing, and memory, recurring ulcers, and is unable to maintain his core body temperature.

He says during his service there was exposure to chemicals during basic work tasks.

“There was fumes, chemicals being used openly with no extraction systems, within feet of where you worked,” Mr Coll said.

“The place was a mess, the floors were that dirty that people were afraid they would catch fire, there was that much oil and chemicals spilled on the floor of the hangers,” he said.

There was also a tradition of ‘tubbing’ in the Air Corps, whereby individuals would be dunked into tanks of chemicals for various purposes, including as part of initiations or hazing.

He said such tubbing happened to him several times.

https://x.com/RTEUpfront/status/1889094673647440041

Mr Coll joined the Air Corps as a teenager, and represented it in national and international rugby and rowing tournaments in the earlier years of his service.

He said he left his job in his mid-20s due to a slew of medical conditions he experienced while he was still serving, including headaches, vomiting, diarrhoea and nosebleeds.

He now requires the use of a mobility scooter or walking stick to get around.

“I suffered anxiety for years, about 2004 or 2005 I started developing neurological problems, pins and needles, tremors and shakes, it started effecting my balance, my memory’s gone, my short-term memory.”

“In a few months time, I’ll probably forget being here tonight,” Mr Coll said.

Two other former Air Corps members also spoke on the programme. Neither are currently taking legal cases, but both believe exposure to chemicals during their service has significantly damaged their health.

Paul Flynn, 52, spoke to presenter Katie Hannon by video call from his hospital bed. He has been in hospital for 15 months.

He joined the Air Corps in 1988 a week after his 16th birthday. From 1991 to 1998, when he left the service, he worked preparing aircraft parts for painting with primers, topcoats, and spraying.

He said in his early days working in the role there was no protective equipment “at all” provided. Several years later, he said he bought his own air-fed mask, but the line installed to feed it was placed beside a compressor in another room where chemicals were also present.

“I have issues with breathing, sometimes I’m on oxygen… I would like the Government to acknowledge that the chemicals have injured people,” Mr Flynn said, who accepts he cannot definitively link his health issues to chemical exposure.

“The Australian and Dutch government have admitted the same chemicals that we used caused the same injuries we have. I want the Irish Government to admit to that and provide us with whatever care they we need.”

Mr Flynn, aged 52, says his medical team is now advising he move to a nursing home.

https://x.com/RTEUpfront/status/1889090652786286649

Michael Byrne joined the Air Corps having served earlier in the army, he entered to train as a winchman, having passed a fitness selection course.

Unlike Mr Coll and Mr Flynn, he did not serve in the paint shop, but he says he was exposed to chemicals during refuelling of aircraft without PPE.

He said he was splashed with chemicals, and had to breathe in chemicals, as he was required to keep his face close to the refuelling point on the aircrafts.

“There was often – a common occurrence – you’d get an airlock, a backwash of fuel into the eyes, into the mouth, ingested it,” he said.

Within a year of joining the Air Corps after the army, Mr Byrne said, his health began to deteriorate, and he eventually left his job.

“I joined the Air Corps to hang out of helicopters. I joined it for the adventure. When I became sick and I wasn’t able to do the duties anymore – and because under aviation law because I was on high dose steroids, you’re not allowed to fly – I was given jobs like answering phones, I was cleaning toilets at times. So I left, disheartened, and I left.”

“I’ve had two knee replacements, I’m due two hip replacements, I currently have a fractured spine, I’m in a brace at the moment, from just doing menial tasks around the house.”

He said he can not definitively trace his health issues to chemical exposure, but says the timeline is significant.

“I was perfectly healthy, from that point – within a year – I went from running ten miles a day to not being able to run across the road when a car came.”

Mr Byrne is not taking a legal case because he is “just trying to get through day-to-day at the moment, just with pain and managing everything like that.

“I want answers, I’m going downhill, my elbows swell, my knees swell … It was proven in Australia, why can’t they use those templates? At home, most days I don’t move, I can’t get up” he said.

In Australia, in 2009 there was a parliamentary inquiry into similar issues which resulted in payments and healthcare services – including cancer screening – being provided to former Royal Australian Air Force members who were exposed to dangerous chemicals.

Several former Air Corps members who say they have been exposed are calling on the Government to take similar action. In particular, they are calling on Taoiseach Micheál Martin to act.

The Taoiseach and other ministers note that the handling of complaints raised about chemical exposed fall under a Tribunal of Inquiry which was set up after the so-called ‘Women of Honour’, which revealed concerns about bullying, misogyny and sexual assault within the Defence Forces.

In June 2017, Mr Coll and others met Mr Martin, then the leader of the opposition, to outline their concerns and issues related to chemical exposure.

Mr Martin subsequently told the Dáil that three whistleblowers had warned in November 2015 about conditions in the Air Corps maintenance units in Baldonnel, and the degree to which staff were “exposed to very dangerous solvents and chemicals.”

Mr Martin at the time called on the government of the day to commission an independent board of inquiry “into this entire affair and scandal,” summarising the then-government’s response as “deny, deny, deny, resist, resist, resist.”

“The linkage of the particular chemicals to cancer-causing diseases, genetic mutation, neurological conditions and chronic diseases have been well-established”, Mr Martin said at the time.

In a statement to Upfront from Katie Hannon, a spokesperson for Mr Martin said “throughout his time as Taoiseach, and as Minister for Defence, the health and safety of the men and women of the Defence Forces has been a priority.

“There are a number of other personal injury claims currently active before the courts, and it wouldn’t be appropriate to encroach on the independence of the legal process.

“The Defence Forces Tribunal of Inquiry was established in June 2024 and, as part of its terms of reference, will investigate the response to complaints made regarding the use of hazardous chemicals within Air Corps’ headquarters at Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel.”

The Department of Defence told Upfront with Katie Hannon: “The Health and Wellbeing of the men and women working in the Air Corps is a priority for the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, as it is for the Defence Forces Management and the Department of Defence.

“The decision to take litigation is a matter for each individual, as is the decision to engage in dialogue to explore and potentially reach a settlement in relation to such matters. In respect of the recently reported case, the parties agreed to settle the matter before the commencement of the trial, on terms agreed by both sides, with the benefit of legal advice at every stage of the process.”

https://www.rte.ie/news/upfront/2025/0211/1495941-ex-air-corps-members-demand-truth-after-2m-chemicals-case

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Delay – Deny – Die

Air Corps chemical poisoning: Betrayal, legal battles, and a decade-long fight for justice

Despite a promise of justice, Air Corps chemical exposure survivors say the Irish State continues to deny and delay accountability

Meeting Micheál Martin on Tuesday, June 20, 2017 is a moment that is etched on Gary Coll’s brain.

As the then leader of the opposition, the now Taoiseach spent the best part of an hour with the former Air Corps aviation technician and five of his colleagues in Leinster House.

They had met him, at his invitation, to plead their case about the need for urgent State intervention into the issues around chemical poisoning in the air corps.

At the time, around 40 Air Corps personnel under the age of 65 were understood to died in the previous 27 years from suicide, cardiovascular events and cancer. Hundreds more were suffering a raft of chemical exposure-related illnesses.

They all mostly maintained aircraft without using PPE, and with little or no training or advice about the toxic chemicals they were either working with or in the vicinity of.

At the end of the meeting Mr Martin, who went on to become Taoiseach in June 2020, vowed to be an advocate to their cause.

Just before the meeting concluded, Gary limped over to him and asked if he would still support air corps chemical exposure survivors when he became Taoiseach.

Gary, who last Wednesday was awarded €2m in a settlement to his High Court claim for damages against the State, recalled:

“He looked me firmly in the eye, and — as he shook my hand — said he would because it was, in his words, ‘the right thing to do’.”

Gary bristles with anger as he recalls the moment.

Read full article by Neil Michael at the Irish Examiner
https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/spotlight/arid-41570956.html

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Delay – Deny – Die

Over a decade on, ill Air Corps technicians still await a fair hearing

The settlement between the State and Gary Coll closes one chapter in the allegations by former Air Corps technicians that they were exposed to dangerous chemicals while working on military vehicles. However, as Joe Leogue outlines, many more cases and issues of disclosure remain unresolved

Ex-Air Corps member Gary Coll from Lifford, Co. Donegal. The State has agreed to pay €2 million to a former Air Corps technician who was allegedly exposed to toxic chemicals which he says caused severe health difficulties. Photo by Joe Dunne

A settlement on the steps of a court usually marks the conclusion of a dispute — however, the reported €2m pay-out to Defence Forces mechanic Gary Coll on Wednesday is but another development in a bitter dispute between the State and former Air Corps technicians that has raged on for over a decade.

Mr Coll settled his High Court action against the State having alleged he was exposed to various dangerous chemicals while he worked at Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel, Dublin. The settlement was made without an admission of liability.

The State contended it provided a safe workplace at Casement, and did not allow inappropriate work practices there.

The settlement is a milestone in an ongoing saga that is complex, but at its core comes down to two simple, related, questions; did the State fail in its duty to protect scores of Defence Forces staff from the impact of harmful chemicals, and were there attempts to cover this up?

Mr Coll’s case was the first of 10 such legal actions to come to an end, with all 10 cases bearing similar complaints. The first legal claims were lodged with the High Court in 2013, and all litigants worked in repair and service workshops based in Casement Aerodrome.

All 10 say that they suffered chronic conditions including cancer and neurological problems as a direct result of their exposure to the chemicals with which they came into contact as part of their duties when servicing Air Corps aircraft.

In 2017, then in opposition, Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin was scathing of the report, accusing the government of knowingly appointing a reviewer who, by his own admission, was unable to meet the terms of reference of the investigation.

“It’s farcical. It seems to me there are no records of compliance with health regulations, which is very, very serious because in their absence one has to conclude that the probability is they were not complied with,” he said.

“The government needs to establish a forensic examination into this,” Mr Martin added.

“I don’t think it is acceptable to wait for court cases against the State to conclude as there is no guarantee these legal proceedings will establish what happened in the past.”

That line has proven particularly prescient eight years later. The settlement of Mr Coll’s case this week means that no evidence was heard. Nothing has yet established what has happened in the past.

This matters to the former Air Corps mechanics for many reasons. Chief among these is that since 2018 the government rejected opposition calls for a healthcare programme for these workers — similar to the Australian model — on the basis that the courts were the place to establish liability.

Read full article by Joe Leogue at the Irish Examiner
https://www.irishtimes.com/crime-law/courts/2025/02/05/state-agrees-2m-settlement-in-air-corps-chemical-tubbing-case/

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Delay – Deny – Die

Air Corps grounds aircraft after safety audit raises concerns over bolt tightening

It is understood an internal safety audit uncovered issues that rendered the planes unsuitable for flying until each aircraft had undergone extensive checks.

The Air Corps has grounded a number of planes over safety concerns about how the nuts and bolts holding them together are tightened, the Irish Examiner can reveal.

It is understood an internal safety audit uncovered issues that rendered the planes unsuitable for flying until each aircraft had undergone extensive checks.

The main concerns are understood to centre around the type of tools used to tighten the planes’ bolts, and the application of what is known as “proper torque”.

This is the specified tightening force needed to apply to an aircraft’s nuts and bolts and which has a force with a specific range prescribed in that particular aircraft’s maintenance manual.

If specially calibrated torque wrenches are not used to tighten nuts and bolts every time, this can lead to problems — including propellers falling off and internal engine damage.

The General Officer Commanding of the Air Corps Brigadier General Rory O’Connor is understood to have summoned all Air Corps engineers officers to meet him about the results of the audit.

The meeting, which was held at the Air Corps base at Baldonnel during the week, is understood to have led to a number of crews being “berated” over safety standards.

“Everyone in Baldonnel is talking about the audit, and the fact that some of the tools used on these very expensive aircraft were bought from a supermarket.”

The Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General Seán Clancy has been briefed on the issue and it is understood there is now an investigation underway about what happened and why.

Read the full article by Neil Michael at the Irish Examiner
https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41570743.html

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Delay – Deny – Die

State agrees €2m settlement in Air Corps chemical ‘tubbing’ case

Central to Gary Coll’s claims was that he underwent ‘tubbing’, a form of hazing where workers were submerged in a bath of unspecified chemicals and oil

The State has agreed to pay €2 million to a former Air Corps technician who was allegedly exposed to toxic chemicals which he says caused severe health difficulties.

The case against the Department of Defence is the first of 10 personal injuries cases due before the courts relating to the exposure of Air Corps members to dangerous chemicals and solvents used in aircraft maintenance.

Gary Coll (51), from Lifford, Co Donegal, joined the Air Corps in 1991, when he was 17, and worked in the avionics section until 1997.

In a statement of claim, he made a large number of allegations against his former employer including that he was not provided with a safe working environment at the Air Corps headquarters in Baldonnell, Co Dublin, and that there was inadequate supervision regarding the use of dangerous chemicals.

Central to Mr Coll’s claims was that he underwent “tubbing”, a form of hazing where workers were submerged in a bath of unspecified chemicals and oil.

Mr Coll, who was once an accomplished athlete, detailed several psychological and physical issues that he alleged were caused by the chemicals. He said he is unable to walk any significant distance without a cane.

Read full article by Conor Gallagher at the Irish Times
https://www.irishtimes.com/crime-law/courts/2025/02/05/state-agrees-2m-settlement-in-air-corps-chemical-tubbing-case/

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Delay – Deny – Die

Dear Councillor, Please don’t give any Seanad Election 2025 preference to Cathal Berry or Gerard Craughwell

Dear Councillor,

My name is Gavin Tobin and I am the spokesperson for the Air Corps Chemical Abuse Survivors. We represent serving & former Irish Air Corps personnel injured by toxic workplace chemicals.

I am also one of the three whistle-blowers that revealed the ongoing workplace chemical Health & Safety tragedy at the Irish Air Corps bases in Baldonnel, Co. Dublin & formerly Gormanston, Co. Meath by making a Protected Disclosure to then Minister Simon Coveney in December 2015.

I believe myself and hundreds of my colleagues were injured by atrocious working conditions in the 1990s whilst working as apprentices, aircraft technicians and support personnel.

I worked in the exact location below where I have recorded 14 untimely deaths just in this location out of 110 untimely deaths overall. That is Ardrox 666 which contained hexavalent chromium (the Erin Brockovich chemical) running down the walls from the extractor fan. The smaller barrel dissolving itself contains Ardrox 1074 with hydrofluoric acid an exceptionally dangerous chemical, this chemical can dissolve glass.

When the Air Corps Pilatus aircraft were being equipped with smoke generators in late 2015, for the centenary flypast to commemorate the 1916 rising, I was made aware of an accident due to chemical exposure where two technicians were injured and when I contacted the HSA to ask if this incident was reported a workplace accident I found it was not. This lead me to realise that the working conditions that I believe made me & others sick in the 1990s still prevailed in 2015.

In parallel Sergeant Patrick Gorman who sat on the National Executive of PDFORRA wrote a letter, raising chemical Health & Safety concerns, to the Defence Forces about the lack of chemical Health & Safety at Baldonnel including the lack of risk assessments, lack of PPE and lack of risk specific health surveillance. The General Secretary of PDFORRA later revealed to me that this letter was never responded to.

Sgt Gorman was one of the whistle-blowers who reported this wrongdoing to Minister Simon Coveney in early 2016 and was constructively dismissed from the Air Corps as a result of doing the right thing.

We also learned that as early as 1995 the Irish Air Corps had independent air quality testing carried out at Baldonnel and found the levels of a toxic solvent in the building where I recorded 14 untimely deaths was 175 parts per million when the then legal limit was 50ppm. This air quality test failure was withheld from personnel who worked there and no actions were taken to reduce or remove the exposure.

In 1995/1997 further testing was carried out by state body Forbairt which again found chemical hazard issues and recommended that all personnel be issued with PPE and be given chemical handling training. This was not actioned until 20 years later after the three whistle-blowers reported the Air Corps to the Health & Safety Authority who threatened legal action against the Air Corps unless they heeded their demands.

You can read about Air Corps / HSA interactions here

We also learned that the State Claims Agency had been auditing the Defence Forces Heath & Safety from 2006 to 2016 and were giving them awards for excellence in Health & Safety and using this success to award themselves performance related gratuities for so called “improvements” in risk profile. These pre-arranged audits “by appointment” are simply not credible.

*****

Cathal Berry

In early 2020 former Commandant Cathal Berry threw his hat in the ring for a Dáil seat in the Kildare South constituency. Cathal Berry is a medical doctor and we thought & hoped he would be keen to help us work to reduce suffering & untimely deaths amongst exposed Irish Air Corps colleagues…how wrong we were.

I did personally offer to canvas for Cathal Berry and indeed some Air Corps Chemical Abuse Survivors did actually canvas for him. There was some hope amongst serving and former Defence Forces personnel that Cathal Berry would give a voice to those harmed by multiple scandals in the Defence Forces including the Air Corps toxic chemical exposure scandal, the Lariam scandal and later the Women of Honour Scandal but there are more.

Alas Cathal Berry had zero interest in anyone wronged by the Defence Forces. He appeared to be there to represent the interests of the Defence Forces management and spent more of his time in the Dáil pushing for more equipment & weapons.

Cathal Berry also voted with the Fianna Fail / Fine Gael / Green government the vast majority of the time. A vote for Cathal Berry is certainly NOT an independent vote.

We would all like to see a better equipped & funded Defence Forces but this cannot be at the cost of trampling on those who were harmed during their service and Cathal Berry showed absolutely zero interest in helping those wronged.

We formally asked Cathal Berry for help on on the 10th of January 2021 and this letter can be read here. Cathal Berry NEVER responded to this letter.

A further 22 fresh deaths have occurred since we first sought help from Cathal Berry, some of these people could have been saved.

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Senator Gerard Craughwell

In April 2017 I made a protect a protected disclosure to a number of politicians in the Oireachtas including the then Taoiseach Enda Kenny, as well as a number of TDs & Senators including Senator Gerard Craughwell.

In my disclosure complained that there had been injury to serving & former personnel and their families with suspected 20 untimely deaths.

- - - I complained that the DoD had appointed someone with no medical background or toxicological background to investigate the whistle-blowers protected disclosure to Minister Coveney.
    - I complained that the State Claims Agency was abusing its position by appealing my High Court discovery decision and I suggested that a better use of these resources would be to conduct a scientific inquiry as had been conducted after a similar health & Safety scandal in the Royal Australian Air Force over two decades ago.
    - I suggested that the state should intervene medically & with a scientific enquiry like in the RAAF scandal.
    - I complained about the Air Corps misleading the WRC and I asked for help saving lives and reducing suffering.
    - I complained about the attempted shredding of Heath & Safety documentations including adverse air quality test reports.

Senator Gerard Craughwell who served in both the Irish Army and the British Army, never responded to the protected disclosure.

In later years I passed Senator Gerard Craughwell a list of untimely deaths which had then grown to 70+ and he again failed to respond to me.

Later on social media Senator Gerard Craughwell when seeking medical interventions to prevent unnecessary suffering of injured colleagues he attempted to paint me as selfishly attempting to speed up my own court case.

You can see our list of demands here.

Since we asked Senator Gerard Craughwell for help in 2017 a further 39 personnel have suffered untimely deaths. Some of these personnel could have been saved but Senator Gerard Craughwell chose to look the other way and not support us. Shame on him.

Senator Gerard Craughwell was the second highest independent senator to vote with the last Fine Gael / Fianna Fail / Green government. A vote for Gerard Craughwell is certainly NOT an independent vote.

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Cathal Berry and Gerard Craughwell could have simultaneously looked for more resources for the Defence Forces on one hand and on the other hand sought medical interventions & other supports for Air Corps Chemical Abuse Survivors, Lariam Survivors & the Women of Honour but they both chose not to and in multiple instances actually downplayed our lived experiences.

Early in 2024 the Women of Honour were joined by the Air Corps Chemical Abuse Survivors & the Defence Forces Justice Alliance to give a briefing to members of the Oireachtas prior to the vote to establish the Defence Forces Tribunal neither Dr Cathal Berry or Gerard Craughwell bothered to attend nor show any other support.

If these two men are elected to the Oireachtas we believe they will continue to have more loyalty to Lockheed Martin than to wronged serving & former Irish Defence Forces colleagues and this is morally wrong.

Full disclosure: I do have a personal injuries legal case pending against the state since 2013 for injuries I believe suffered during my service. I have been to the High Court 2016, Court of Appeal 2018, Supreme Court 2019 and the High Court again in 2023 to force compliance with the Supreme Court order of 2019 and all this just for discovery!

This decades long legal action should not in any way exclude me from the democratic process but I have been ghosted by Taoiseach Simon Harris, Tánaiste & Minister for Defence Micheál Martin and previously Leo Varadkar. Even President Michael D Higgins is currently refusing to meet with me or indeed any other #IrishAirCorps survivors.

Please do not vote for either Cathal Berry or Gerard Craughwell and give your independent vote for a true independent candidate not government supporting pretend independents.

Thank You.

Failed general election Independents Cathal Barry and Matt Shanahan to run for Seanad

Seanad office receives 70 nominations in advance of Wednesday deadline for candidates backed by professional bodies

Former Independent TD Cathal Berry who lost his South Kildare Seat in the general election is to run in the Seanad election as is former Waterford Independent TD Matt Shanahan, both of them from the Regional Independent group in the last Dáil.

Mr Berry, a former Army Ranger and medical doctor who received nominations from Oireachtas members, said “national security is a priority around Europe at the moment … So you need people with a particular expertise to have a mature conversation about it. And that’s what the Seanad is all about.”

The Upper House is seen as a way for former TDs to remain in the Oireachtas to win back their Dáil seat in the following general election.

Read full article by Marie O’Halloran at the Irish Times

https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2024/12/18/failed-general-election-independents-cathal-barry-and-matt-shanahan-to-run-for-seanad/https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster/arid-41414152.html

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