Any secret installations in Ireland?

Scan Man · 18-02-2011 11:43am #1

I hope this is the right forum for this thread, if not apologies to all.

I'm interested if anyone has any info on "secret" government or military structures in Ireland. I know there's plenty in the UK and have visited a range of the old WWII bunkers and structures built in France by the Germans, such as the Atlantic Wall and assorted structures, La Coupole, etc.

A UK site has a few interesting finds on it, which might give you an idea of the range of buildings I'm talking about: http://www.secret-bases.co.uk/

I have heard that there are several nuclear bunkers dotted around the country, in places like Port Laoise, Mullingar, Dublin, etc. and a few Radomes in Cork, associated with short-wave radio trans-Atlantic air traffic control.

mgmt · 18-02-2011 3:03pm

I don't know if its a secret but there is plenty of concrete machine gun pillboxes built into the ditches of rural cavan roads (and I assume most counties), I presume built during ww2.

Judgement Day · 18-02-2011 3:08pm

You mean like the 'radar' station near Schull in west Cork?

The nuclear bunker under the Costume Barracks in Athlone?

No pics of the bunker but I'm sure if you call to the barracks at Grace Road in Athlone they will look after you.

This is where the Irish government thought they would be going in event of a nuclear armageddon. Given that we would have got three minutes warning (probably late) and if you were a soldier facing into a nuclear winter would you want to share your limited rations with a bunch of fat, useless politicians. I guess we will never find out now but I like the idea that the soldiers would have opened up with everything at their disposal on the ministerial mercs.

Interesting piece about it here: http://www.independent.ie/unsorted/features/waking-up-to-a-nuclear-nightmare-165435.html

Sponge Bob · 18-02-2011 3:08pm

Crap bunkers under Moneenageisha School in Galway and the Athlone barracks.

iMax · 18-02-2011 3:12pm

There's a "secret" area at Collinstown airport (the old Dublin airport building). In the basement. Permanent Garda & army guard on duty - don't know why they have both.

Sponge Bob · 18-02-2011 3:24pm

Soldiers cannot arrest somebody, not even after they shoot them dead. So the Guards are there to do the paperwork

I think this is the old 'standby' patrol from Collins Barracks relocated inside the airport where they used to patrol the perimeter outside.

trad · 18-02-2011 3:25pm

I am always curious as to why there are doors underneath the overbridges on the M50.

dubhthach · 18-02-2011 4:22pm

With regards to Nuclear winter from what I recall the Soviet target map had three sites on the island. These been unsurprisingly:

Dublin Airport
Shannon
Aldergrove

DoesNotCompute · 18-02-2011 4:26pm

Didn't the Wikileaks diplomatic cables leak say something about secret CIA bases in Ireland?

tricky D · 18-02-2011 4:32pm

trad wrote: »

I am always curious as to why there are doors underneath the overbridges on the M50.

Maintenance most likely. While not sure what exact type of bridge you're referring to, ones like the Westlink are hollow beneath the road pavement with prestressing cables running through them.

Judgement Day · 18-02-2011 5:31pm

dubhthach wrote: »

With regards to Nuclear winter from what I recall the Soviet target map had three sites on the island. These been unsurprisingly:
Dublin Airport

Shannon

Aldergrove

That would have taken care of most of the country but what about our neutral status?

Bogger77 · 18-02-2011 5:33pm

Dead people are all neutral!

who the fug · 18-02-2011 5:35pm

Judgement Day wrote: »

You mean like the 'radar' station near Schull in west Cork?

What is secret about Mount Gabriel

DoesNotCompute · 18-02-2011 5:35pm

Judgement Day wrote: »

That would have taken care of most of the country but what about our neutral status?

In Soviet Russia, country neutalises YOU!

who the fug · 18-02-2011 5:38pm

Judgement Day wrote: »

That would have taken care of most of the country but what about our neutral status?

What should have done is called ourselves a Nuclear free zone like Brent in North London

Problem solved

dubhthach · 18-02-2011 5:38pm

Judgement Day wrote: »

That would have taken care of most of the country but what about our neutral status?

Well Soviets reckoned the US would use Shannon for Troop movement cross-Atlantic (isn't that Shannon's main business these days?), so I believe their thinking was better to deny it straight away. The whole strategy was based on a land invasion of "West Germany" so the longer they could keep US reinforcements getting to Europe the better.

Judgement Day · 18-02-2011 5:43pm

who the fug wrote: »

What is secret about Mount Gabriel

As far as I remember in my Guinness impaired brain it was very secretive in its early years and, indeed, in 1982 was attacked by the INLA http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/inla.htm

who the fug · 18-02-2011 5:59pm

Judgement Day wrote: »

As far as I remember in my Guinness impaired brain it was very secretive in its early years and, indeed, in 1982 was attacked by the INLA http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/inla.htm

INLA were a bunch of paranoid tossers, air traffic control was all it ever was.

Never ever heard a sniff about it

admiralofthefleet · 18-02-2011 10:37pm

iMax wrote: »

There's a "secret" area at Collinstown airport (the old Dublin airport building). In the basement. Permanent Garda & army guard on duty - don't know why they have both.

i know a garda that works in the airport, she told me they call that area 'the train station' as it was built with the idea that an underground station would eventually open there

Del2005 · 18-02-2011 10:46pm

Judgement Day wrote: »

That would have taken care of most of the country but what about our neutral status?

We where never neutral, we are polically non aligned. Neutral countries can defend their own boarders, which we never could or can.

runway16 · 18-02-2011 10:50pm

admiralofthefleet wrote: »

i know a garda that works in the airport, she told me they call that area 'the train station' as it was built with the idea that an underground station would eventually open there

No, thats in reference to the basement of the current Terminal one (check in area 14). That space was originally planned for use as a future underground stop.

delly · 18-02-2011 10:58pm

Its not really a secret, but not many people know there is a rail tunnel under the Phoenix Park.

Plowman · 18-02-2011 11:40pm

This post has been deleted.

Judgement Day · 18-02-2011 11:52pm

delly wrote: »

Its not really a secret, but not many people know there is a rail tunnel under the Phoenix Park.

CIE prefer it kept a secret as people might suggest it as a cheaper alternative to the Interconnector wet dream.:rolleyes:

Sponge Bob · 19-02-2011 12:39am

When Mt Gabriel was built the data was sent to RAF West Drayton where military and civilian air traffic in southern england were both co located in those days. One could not adequately explain how they were separate but in the same building.... so the INLA thought it was a military installation.

To confuse matters :cool: Civilian Traffic control moved to Swanwick some years ago and the military followed them there and they share the same control room nowadays.....not like the old days

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyDXCwe1REQ

runway16 · 19-02-2011 12:47am

I'd think that actually a pretty good arrangement - in airspace as busy as the UK, it is good that they are co-located and can easily talk to each other.

Sadly for the civilian guys though - i guess it makes them a military target!

Topper Harley01 · 19-02-2011 1:27am

dubhthach wrote: »

With regards to Nuclear winter from what I recall the Soviet target map had three sites on the island. These been unsurprisingly:
Dublin Airport

Shannon

Aldergrove

The petroleum terminals at Bantry Bay were also going to get destroyed-stop the fuel supplies and everything grinds to a halt. I would imagine that the Curragh and Dublin probably would have been hit too.

http://games.juhlin.com/files/uk_strike_map.jpg

Here is an article on NI nuclear targets:

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sunday-life/nuclear-war-the-hidden-threat-to-northern-ireland-14511589.html

As one poster asked, what about our neutrality? It doesn't mean diddly squat. Nor does our simpleton 'shure we're Irish, everyone loves us' routine. The Russians would have wiped out all of Western Europe in a nuclear war; the idea being that there would be no working countries left to help with the rebuild. And that includes us.

Bet you never heard the anti-war movement tell you about that little nugget, did ya? :eek:

monument · 19-02-2011 1:50am

DoesNotCompute wrote: »

Didn't the Wikileaks diplomatic cables leak say something about secret CIA bases in Ireland?

Not quite a CIA base, but a building in Dublin which is part of the US's world network backbone.

Doom · 19-02-2011 2:08am

Active nuclear shelter under sarsfield house in Limerick.....revenue commissioner's building!! ****ers will tax the survivors

Del2005 · 19-02-2011 9:04am

Topper Harley01 wrote: »

The Russians would have wiped out all of Western Europe in a nuclear war; the idea being that there would be no working countries left to help with the rebuild. And that includes us.

Even the Russians knew that is MAD

who the fug · 19-02-2011 5:56pm

Sponge Bob wrote: »

When Mt Gabriel was built the data was sent to RAF West Drayton where military and civilian air traffic in southern england were both co located in those days. One could not adequately explain how they were separate but in the same building.... so the INLA thought it was a military installation.

To confuse matters :cool: Civilian Traffic control moved to Swanwick some years ago and the military followed them there and they share the same control room nowadays.....not like the old days

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyDXCwe1REQ

Was that what gave them the idea, by that dump logic thye should have blown up the tank farm out side Cork airport as they refueled RAF Sea Kings on search and rescue missions

Muppets:D

Any secret installations in Ireland?

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