Aircraft carrying weapons possibly violated Irish sovereign airspace while trying ‘to save fuel’, Tánaiste suggests

The only reason aircraft carrying weapons of war violated Irish sovereign airspace was to save fuel, Tánaiste Micheál Martin has said.
Questions were raised in the Dáil about the controversy over a number of air operators carrying munitions through sovereign Irish air space. Sinn Féin foreign affairs spokesman Matt Carthy said there were more reports that Irish airspace is again being used for the transport of munitions ultimately for use by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
He said The Ditch website reported earlier this week that Irish airspace was continuing to be used by aircraft carrying weapons of war.
Mr Martin said he had not received a “definitive conclusion” from the Department of Transport and its investigation was ongoing. He said officials were “engaging with those air operators and working to establish the nature of the cargo concerned”.
The department last month confirmed it found nine flights destined for Israel had flown through Irish airspace without permission. It is prohibited under Irish legislation for civilian aircraft to carry weapons of war in Irish airspace without express permission from the Minister for Transport. Since the revelations about the overflights one carrier allegedly involved is now rerouting flights around Irish airspace.
The Tánaiste stressed the difference between “Irish sovereign airspace and Irish-controlled airspace”.
In Irish-controlled airspace, a larger area of airspace “where Ireland’s role is limited to providing certain air traffic control services”, legislation on carrying weapons does not apply, he said. “It seems to me the only objective in violating Irish airspace would be one of saving fuel,” he added.
Mr Carthy said he did not think the Tánaiste “considers this to be a serious matter”.
“We are told that these flights contain serious weapons of war that are ultimately being used by the Israel Defense Forces,” he said.
Insisting that the Government does “take the matter seriously”, Mr Martin said airlines “can go miles outside of our sovereign airspace and they would not be in violation of our laws or the Chicago convention but would still be transporting whatever cargo of weapons or whatever to wherever they want to go, including Israel”.
Independent TD Catherine Connolly claimed “military warplanes carrying tonnes of weapons are staying overnight or passing through Shannon”. She have gave details of a number of flights earlier this month and called for them to be inspected.
Mr Martin said “we have not received any evidence that major cargoes of military weapons are landing at Shannon Airport”.
Ms Connolly told him “you cannot find out if you do not look, or inspect, or rely on reassurances from the American state that is backing Israel to the core”.
The Tánaiste replied that foreign military aircraft given permission to land in Ireland were not subject to inspection.
“Sovereign immunity, a long-standing principle of customary international law, means that a state may not exercise its jurisdiction in respect to another state or its property, including state and military aircraft,” he said. “This principle applies automatically to foreign state or military aircraft in the same way that it applies to Irish State or military aircraft abroad.”
He added: “The challenge is that no state exercises its jurisdiction over military aircraft that land. If the president of America lands at Shannon, Air Force One, which is a military aircraft, is not inspected.”