Air Corps Gulfstream 4 Sold

It's grounded due to expensive repairs outstanding so the value looks accurate enough - it's probably going for parting out

Marchetti`s
Dauphine`s
G IV

The Americans certainly get a lot of bang for their Bucks when dealing with the Dept of Defence. A good return on Tax payers money:rolleyes:

Klunk001 wrote: »

Marchetti`s
Dauphine`s
G IV

The Americans certainly get a lot of bang for their Bucks when dealing with the Dept of Defence. A good return on Tax payers money:rolleyes:

Its hard to know without knowing what was required to get it airworthy again.

BonkeyDonker wrote: »

Its hard to know without knowing what was required to get it airworthy again.

That's the reality. Government's are risk averse to stuff like that. It's like that show 'Wheeler Dealers' Buy something, put some money into it and sell it on. Government's just don't do that.

Dáil written reply last week

Tuesday, 24 March 2015

133. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Defence the status of the two Government jets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11619/15]

Minister for Defence (Deputy Simon Coveney): On the 27th of July last, the Gulfstream IV aircraft, which had been in service for 23 years, travelled to the Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation facility in Georgia, USA, for its annual maintenance inspection. During this inspection, it became apparent that the servicing and repair of the aircraft would have involved a significantly higher level of investment than was anticipated. Given the number of flying hours achieved and the age of the craft it was decided that the aircraft would be withdrawn from service and would not be returned back to Ireland.

The Department concluded the sale for the aircraft on an as seen basis with a US based company in December 2014. Meanwhile, the Ministerial Air Transport Service (MATS) is being provided by the Learjet 45 aircraft.

An inter-Departmental MATS Review Group has been established to examine options for the future provision of a service that will continue to provide the President, members of the Government and accompanying officials with an independent means of international air transport. When the Group has completed its deliberations and made its recommendations, I will bring a Report to Government with recommendations on how best to provide a MATS service into the future.

http://oireachtasdebates.oireachtas.ie/debates%20authoring/DebatesWebPack.nsf/takes/dail2015032400054#WRA01400

billy few mates wrote: »

Does anybody know what exactly it was that grounded it....?

Wednesday, 28 January 2015

Deputy Simon Coveney: As I stated before, when the Gulfstream jet was presented for its due service last summer, many extra problems arose. The closer the aeroplane was looked at, the more issues that emerged with it such as corrosion on the undercarriage. I made the decision then that we were not going to spend any more money on it in trying to make it fit for purpose. Given the budgetary position the country was facing and the Government had to manage in the past four years, we had to ensure we were not spending money on an aeroplane that was really at the end of its life. Accordingly, we stopped spending money. We have since gone through a process of selling the aeroplane to get as much of a return as we can on it. I cannot give the Deputy figures as matters are still being finalised. However, the sales process is under way.

http://oireachtasdebates.oireachtas.ie/debates%20authoring/DebatesWebPack.nsf/committeetakes/JUS2015012800007

EchoIndia wrote: »

The Government here decided that they were not prepared to spend that money, presumably on the basis of an assessment of the costs involved.

The decision was probably prompted by political rather than commercial considerations. While it might have made sense to invest some money to make it more saleable or extend it's service life, the assorted lefties in the Dail would have jumped up and down kicking up a fuss, hence the path of least resistance was to simply dump it.

Absolutely mind boggling alas zero surprise, a political not commercial move.

Just like the Dauphin debacle...

"GOVERNMENT ministers have denied that the taxpayer lost out on millions of euro following the sale of four Irish army helicopters.

The four Defence Forces helicopters were originally sold to a US company for a mere €311,000 but, according to weekend reports, were then resold to the Chilean navy for nearly €19 million.

However, Junior Defence Minister Pat Carey yesterday said it was “factually incorrect” as claimed in reports that taxpayers had lost out on the deal.

The Dauphin helicopters were 20 years old, he explained, and had been in need of serious and costly repair.

“They had been taken out of a lot of operational matters including search and rescue. Their capabilities were extremely limited.

“The other issue was the avionics in them were first generation and would have needed replacement and the reality is it wasn’t possible to get avionics for them or spare parts,” he told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland.

The decision was taken to sell the army aircraft in 2006 after internal department inquiries estimated that the cost of doing up the aircraft could have been up to €3.5m for each one, added Mr Carey.

The price received was the “best price got”, he stressed.

“We believe the correct course of action was taken because replacement helicopters and other planes for the Air Corps were necessary,” he added.

The four helicopters were sold to Colorado firm Rotor Leasing.

Company official Christopher Bateman yesterday said: “None of them were airworthy, two of them hadn’t flown in four years. The other two had been more recently taken out of service.”

The aircraft had been due for significant inspections before being sold by the Government but were in various states of disrepair, he added.

The US company had incurred huge costs bringing the helicopters across the Atlantic, repairing them and then had put them on the market a year and half ago, the company official added.

Mr Bateman told RTÉ that the original price for the helicopters was a fair one. He would not say how much they were sold on for but admitted the price had been at least 100% above the original sale price but only after the repairs had been completed."

The people here who are criticising the sale haven't spelled out what they would have done instead.

Chuck Aaron wrote: »

Put a few quid into it and get the C of A and sell her on for something other than peanuts.

How much would you be prepared to spend?

$640K really sounds as if it was sold for scrap.

L1011 wrote: »

So they should open a Gulfstream overhaul shop for one job?

Let's think completely outside the box for a moment now petal...

The Irish Government Gulfstream, it needed a few parts whether it be safe life or fail safe parts, throw those on and its net worth would be an enormous amount more than that without the parts, and it sitting, wasting away on the ground where it was left at the TIME OF SALE.

Used the caps there for, like emphasis.

Best point that out 'case you need that explained to you too.

Chuck Aaron wrote: »

Let's think completely outside the box for a moment now petal...

The Irish Government Gulfstream, it needed a few parts whether it be safe life or fail safe parts, throw those on and its net worth would be an enormous amount more than that without the parts, and it sitting, wasting away on the ground where it was left at the TIME OF SALE.

Used the caps there for, like emphasis.

Best point that out 'case you need that explained to you too.

Less of the attitude please, attack the post not the poster.

L1011 wrote: »

So you want the Government to start investing money in retired assets in the hope that they can increase the value, then?

You do realise that this isn't the job of a Government, ever, anywhere right?

They sold it at its asset value to someone who has taken a risk on it. End of story.

You, my friend, haven't a clue.

The Jet was/is an investment to anyone with a brain, in the industry.

The net worth alone was more than the sales point, doesn't take Halking to work that one out.

Simon, who is technically responsible as minister DOD, should have taken his finger out and got a fair price for it.

His father would frown I'd imagine what with his lack of luster.

Give a bunch of teachers the reigns, Painful tbh.

EchoIndia wrote: »

It must be great to be possessed of such certainty in the absence of any definitive information about the nature of the issues found with the aircraft and the costs associated with rectifying them. (Those costs might have run into millions.) The Government had in any case decided back in 2013 or so that it was not going to expend any substantial amount on keeping the G-IV in service so, once issues were found during last year's check, that probably sealed its fate.

Call it Magic, or as I call it Experience.

Living in the real world helps by the way E.I.