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Displaying items by tag: Regatta

On the last Saturday in August, it was the turn of the Juniors of Carlingford Lough Yacht Club to race in their own regatta, along with visitors from across the Lough at Carlingford Sailing Club.

Carlingford Lough YC is situated on the north shore of the Lough at Killowen in Co Down at the foot of the Mourne Mountains and CSC is in Carlingford town on the south side in County Louth with a backdrop of Slieve Foye.

Conditions were kind to the 15 strong fleet with sunshine.

The top three in the prize list of the Junior fleet were all ILCA 6s, with first David Fegan, second Maya O’Neill and third Fiachra McCormick. In the Novice division, it was Jack Ives first and Emma Gibbons second in Toppers.

Carlingford Lough competitors racing

Results are below

Published in Youth Sailing
Tagged under

Stella Maris Rowing Club will be holding its annual regatta on the River Liffey this coming Sunday 10 July with the competition getting underway from 10 am at Poolbeg Marina in Dublin’s Docklands.

The day is so far promising dry weather with light winds, which will bring some cheer in a season that’s suffered from blowouts and poor conditions for coastal rowing in the early part for the East Coast circuit.

And it also marks the Ringsend club’s first full regatta since 2019 before the pandemic, so the celebratory mood will be expectedly high.

Under-12s will be a part of a packed junior racing programme this Sunday | Credit: Stella Maris Rowing ClubUnder-12s will be a part of a packed junior racing programme this Sunday | Credit: Stella Maris Rowing Club

Ten clubs from along the East Coast from Balbriggan to Arklow will be taking part, bringing over 120 crews onto the water throughout the day in racing across 16 different categories.

The draw takes place at 9am for the race list, which includes Novice, Inter, Junior and Senior Men and Ladies, U12s mixed, U14 for Boys and Girls, U16 for Boys and Girls, U18/U21 for Boys and Girls and a Mixed class.

Coxswains meet at 9.30am and the first race starts at 10am. For the full race order see the club’s Facebook page HERE.

Stella Maris’ Realt Na Mara in action at a previous regatta | Credit: Stella Maris Rowing ClubStella Maris’ Realt Na Mara in action at a previous regatta | Credit: Stella Maris Rowing Club

Download the full race list below. Draw at 9 am, Coxswains meeting at 9.30 am and first Race @ 10 am

Published in Coastal Rowing

Crosshaven Trad Sail returns for another year this weekend from Friday 14 to Sunday 16 June with a packed programme of festival events around the historic boat regatta.

Registration (€25) is open for participating skippers, with early arrivals potentially having a regal audience as the Dutch royal family makes a special visit to the Cork Harbour village on Friday, as previously reported on Afloat.ie.

Celebrations begin at The Oar Bar on Friday evening with live music upstairs from 8pm.

Action on the water gets under way at 2pm on Saturday in the vicinity of The Grassy after a 12.30pm skippers’ briefing at Hugh Coveney Pier.

That will be followed by more craic across Crosshaven’s pubs, with a ‘Pirates’ Pub Crawl’ getting started at Fitzy’s Bar from 7.30pm.

Hopefully there won’t be too may sore heads at the breakfast BBQ on Sunday at Hugh Coveney Pier in aid of Crosshaven Sea Scouts.

Sunday racing for all types of craft gets going at 2pm, before the Parade of Sail to wow spectators at 4pm, and the regatta prize-giving ceremony on the pier at six.

The Sunday also promises to be a fun-filled family day out, with a junior knot-typing competition, crab fishing, fancy dress, face painting, a colouring contest and more from 11am, while Crosshaven RNLI will also be hosting their Open Day at the lifeboat station from 1pm.

For full details of what’s happening in Crosshaven this weekend, see the Crosshaven Trad Sail website and follow on Facebook.

Click HERE for images from last year’s festival.

Published in Maritime Festivals

#Rowing: The hosts won the men's senior eights title at Trinity Regatta today. The Trinity/Lady Elizabeth crew had a length and a quarter to spare over Blue Star, a British crew which featured Scott Durant, an Olympic gold medallist, along with former Ireland internationals Cormac Folan and Niall Kenny.

 The men's senior singles went to Michael Maher after a disqualification. The race featured a clash between the two Commercial men, after which Niall Beggan was disqualified.

 The women's novice eight gave DULBC a chance to show their mettle. They raced Neptune in the final and won well. Bann's women's junior 18 eight looked strong and crossed the line ahead of Graiguenamanagh - but Bann were disqualified for not staying the right side of a buoy.

 Brian Colsh of Sligo continued his good run by taking the men's junior 18 single, while Galway beat Blackrock in the men's junior 16 eights final.

Published in Rowing

#YouthSailing - Bray Sailing Club has announced details of its 2018 Junior Regatta, taking place this coming Friday 27 July.

Last year’s regatta was Bray’s largest open event, and this year the club hopes to welcome even more visitors from neighbouring clubs and make the event even bigger.

The Notice of Race, sailing instructions and entry form are now available to download from the Bray Sailing Club website.

If you are planning to bring a boat to the regatta by road, or have any other queries as a prospective competitor, contact [email protected].

Published in Youth Sailing
Tagged under

#Rowing: Ireland’s new pair of Emily Hegarty and Aifric Keogh put in a decisive sprint in the final 200 metres to take a crucial third place in their heat at the World Cup Regatta in Belgrade this morning. Britain took the first two qualification places for the semi-finals. For much of the race, Serbia held third, with Ireland lagging behind by over a length in fourth and set to go to a repechage. However, Ireland finished well and passed the hosts.

World Cup Regatta, Belgrade (Irish interest)

Women

Pair – Heat One (First Three to A/B Semi-Finals; rest to repechage): 1 Britain One 7:19.05, 2 Britain Two 7:22.92, 3 Ireland (A Keogh, E Hegarty) 7:23.77.

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: The organisers of Lough Rynn Regatta, set for Saturday, have cancelled the event. As Thursday went on the weather forecasts suggested that the mean speed of the win would be over 20 kilometres per hour with gusts which could make rowing on some parts of the course unsafe.

 John Walsh, the regatta secretary, sent out a statement which said:

 It is with huge regret and a heavy heart that the committee of Lough Rynn Regatta communicates this press release to inform the clubs that the Regatta for 2018 scheduled for 5th May 2018 has been cancelled due to the forecasted wind and wind gusts that are promised tomorrow during the middle of the day.

 In the interest of athlete and volunteer safety we have made this decision in as timely a manner as possible. We gave the forecast every chance to improve once it deterioated yesterday afternoon and have even debated which forecast is the best to use. To be fair to all of the 41 clubs and 443 crews that were due to compete on the day and that were to due to travel from all over the country this decision is now being communicated in line with the initial announcement last night.

We would sincerely like to thank each and every one of the clubs, athletes and coaches who entered in such large numbers and to our army of volunteers who had set aside their day for the hosting of a successful regatta. Included in our volunteer rota was Mr. Eamonn Colclough, President of Rowing Ireland and Ms Michelle Carpenter the newly appointed CEO of Rowing Ireland. All our volunteers who have worked tirelessly over the past number of weeks are all equally devasted but safety comes first in this instance.

We will review the rowing calendar and hopefully will be back later in the year with an alternative event / date.

 Thank you all for your continued support.

Yours in rowing

John Walsh

Regatta Secretary

Published in Rowing

East Coast sailing fans are expecting a big weekend for the 'Taste of Greystones' Regatta this Sunday and, as the name suggests, Greystones Regatta in County Wicklow is about a night–out followed by a morning's racing. 'The night out is guaranteed, says Greystones Sailing Club Commodore, Darragh Cafferkey, 'the racing now lies with the wind gods'. 

'All this week the weather forecasts have been bouncing from five to 25–knots and from factor 50 to umbrellas', Cafferkey told Afloat.ie

It must surely be a case of third time lucky for the Wicklow initiative because the last two editions have been cut short due to lack of wind

As Afloat.ie reported earlier this week, 55 boats are already entered – and that's ahead of 2016 numbers at this stage – to the extent that Cafferkey, himself a top Irish Sea Offshore campaigner, estimates 140 boats are expected for the raft–up at Greystones Marina in preparation for the two race series on Sunday morning that marks the end of the Summer sailing season on the East coast.

In 2013, the inaugural regatta attracted 68 boats, in 2014, this had grown to 80 and in 2015 the regatta broke the 100–mark with 2016 witnessing further growth.

Greystones Wicklow sailing 0556Cruiser–racers will race on two separate courses this year at the Taste of Greystones Regatta in County Wicklow Photo: Afloat.ie

This year the event will be split into two courses with Class 1, 2, 3 racing on North course and White Sails in two fleets on South Course.

As Afloat.ie reported in August 2013, the regatta was originally established in a format that would attract all the East Coast clubs that don’t typically travel, it has grown in size with the following clubs all confirming feeder races.

Bobby kerr sailing sigma33 1700Dublin Bay's Bobby Kerr is a past competitor at Greystones sailing his Sigma 33 Leeuwin from the Royal Irish Yacht Club. Photo: Afloat.ie

Wexford/Courtown will race to Arklow and join the Arklow fleet for a race to Greystones Harbour.

Wicklow Sailing Club, Bray Sailing Club, Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club and Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club have all confirmed races to Greystones on Saturday, Caffekey told Afloat.ie

Dublin Bay will have a feeder race available for all classes and ISORA have over 25 entries confirmed for its race to Greystones.

Over ten boats from Howth have also entered meaning almost every club on the East coast plan to attend.

checkmate Wicklow sailing 0609Dave Cullen's champion Checkmate is a regular competitor off Wicklow Photo: Afloat.ie

A feature of the event is that it is run both on IRC/Standard ECHO and current ECHO. IRC/Standard Echo with only a few points between them means all boats regardless of certs can race based on the boat' s rating, according to Cafferkey.

Astrix sonata Hunter 2015Frazer Meredith's Astrix, a Hunter Sonata, is heading for Greystones Photo: Afloat.ie

The current Echo means that the many non Dublin Bay clubs can use their own local ratings to come to a joint event . There is a limit on current echo to 3%+/- the boats standard handicap.

It is this decision four years ago that made it realistic for all East Coast clubs to come and compete. 'So prizes based on your boat and prizes based on your club performance. Something for everybody', Cafferkey says.

The support of sponsor BJ Marine has allowed Greystones Sailing Club organisers extend hospitality at its new club house that opened over a year ago on the South Pier, to include berth, BBQ, beer in Club and Beachouse plus Breakfast on Sunday. 'Throw in some Musto discounts, Water, bars and sandwiches on the water and there is little left uncovered', Cafferkey says.

First gun at Greystones on Sunday is at 10.55am.

Published in Greystones Harbour

Are you Interested in Sailing or Buying a Sigma 33?

Experience a sail at our Open Morning on Sunday, 24th September 2017 at the Royal St. George Yacht Club

from  9.30–1.00 O’Clock

Followed by finger food in the Club afterwards

For more details call Paddy Maguire 087 2361916 or e- mail [email protected]

More details on the Sigma 33 class from the 2017 season below.

The Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta was for the Sigma 33 one design class the third major open Championship of 2017. The season stared in Tarbert, Scotland at the end of May, with the Scottish series with ten competitors and was won by “Mayrise” James Miller of Cove Sailing Club (CCC) with four wins from eight races.

The next event was in Helensburgh in Mid-June for the Class Championships which was won by “ Miss Behavin” Alan Lennox, Helensburgh Sailing Club. The 13–boat fleet completed eight of the ten planned races over the three days.

The Dun Laoghaire Regatta series had 19 entries including nine from the home waters and ten visitors from Northern Ireland, Scotland, England, the Isle of Man and local boats from Arklow and Waterford. The nine race series was dominated the top six visiting boats. Most of them had competed in Tarbert and Helensburgh and benefited from the close racing at both events. It proved very difficult for local boats to break into the top six in any race. The racing was very competitive with places changing on all legs. The Dun Laoghaire Regatta series was won by Alan Harper & Kristy Robertson in “ Mayraise” The Irish Championship were run in conjunction with the regatta and won by Paul Prentice in “ Squawk” from the Royal Ulster Yacht Club.

Sigma33 Dublin Bay 1 0497Visiting Sigma 33 crews to Dublin Bay in July visiting crews were made up of young and experienced sailors, both men and women. Photo: Afloat.ie

The Sigma 33’s were the biggest one design keelboat class at the regatta and this added to the more enjoyable competition for competitors. The visiting crews comprised young and experienced sailors, both men and women. It’s on occasions like that that you think of how good Tim Goodbody was in that he was regularly in the top three in such regattas.

It wasn’t all racing and on the Friday night 120 of the fleet held a bicentennial Dinner in The Royal Irish Yacht Club. Prizes were presented to the winners of the day’s racing “ Mayrise” Alan Harper and Kristy Robertson CCC and “Rupert” Richard and Philip Lovegrove of the RStGYC. Thanks to Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company, each boat was presented with a History of the Harbour.

The local fleet will recognise that they need to be more competitive as a fleet if they are to compete more successfully in this type of competitive regatta. There is a big incentive for the Class. In 2018, the Sigma 33 National Championships and Irish Championships will be held in Dun Laoghaire and 2019 is a Dun Laoghaire Regatta year. It is expected that similar entries to 2017 will compete each year. This also provides a great opportunity for young local sailors to acquire a Sigma 33 with a major event in local waters for each of the next two years and discover how successfully they could compete against the visitors and local sailors.

Sigma33 Dublin Bay 2 0485The Sigma 33 Fleet will hold a 'Sigma 33 Morning' on Sunday 24th September 2017 at 9.30am in The Royal St. George in Dun Laoghaire

As part of the recognition of the changes required to improve our competitiveness, the Sigma 33 Fleet will hold a 'Sigma 33 Morning' to enable anyone interested in buying or sailing on Sigma 33’s to sail on Sunday 24th September 2017 at 9.30am in The George. All are welcome to come down and to join us for finger food afterwards. If you wish to attend please confirm your attendance by contacting Sigma 33 Class Captain Paddy Maguire at [email protected]

Published in Sigma

#HYC - Howth Yacht Club has posted the Notice of Race and sailing instructions for the Lambay Race and Howth Regatta taking place this Friday 2 and Saturday 3 June.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, this year’s Lambay Race will feature a special ‘ISORA class’ alongside the day race scheduled by the offshore sailing series this Saturday.

However, the ISORA fleet will continue from the Lambay finish mark in Howth towards Dublin Port to join the festivities at Dublin Riverfest.

As for the annual North Dublin regatta, the entry list stands at 62 boats as of this morning (Monday 29 May).

While the vast majority of entrants are cruisers both spinnaker and non-spinnaker, there are a few Puppeteers, Ruffian 23s and of course Howth 17s in the mix for the races, recently paid tribute by our own WM Nixon.

Published in Howth YC
Tagged under
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About the Irish Navy

The Navy maintains a constant presence 24 hours a day, 365 days a year throughout Ireland’s enormous and rich maritime jurisdiction, upholding Ireland’s sovereign rights. The Naval Service is tasked with a variety of roles including defending territorial seas, deterring intrusive or aggressive acts, conducting maritime surveillance, maintaining an armed naval presence, ensuring right of passage, protecting marine assets, countering port blockades; people or arms smuggling, illegal drugs interdiction, and providing the primary diving team in the State.

The Service supports Army operations in the littoral and by sealift, has undertaken supply and reconnaissance missions to overseas peace support operations and participates in foreign visits all over the world in support of Irish Trade and Diplomacy.  The eight ships of the Naval Service are flexible and adaptable State assets. Although relatively small when compared to their international counterparts and the environment within which they operate, their patrol outputs have outperformed international norms.

The Irish Naval Service Fleet

The Naval Service is the State's principal seagoing agency. The Naval Service operates jointly with the Army and Air Corps.

The fleet comprises one Helicopter Patrol Vessel (HPV), three Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV), two Large Patrol Vessel (LPV) and two Coastal Patrol Vessels (CPV). Each vessel is equipped with state of the art machinery, weapons, communications and navigation systems.

LÉ EITHNE P31

LE Eithne was built in Verlome Dockyard in Cork and was commissioned into service in 1984. She patrols the Irish EEZ and over the years she has completed numerous foreign deployments.

Type Helicopter Patrol Vessel
Length 80.0m
Beam 12m
Draught 4.3m
Main Engines 2 X Ruston 12RKC Diesels6, 800 HP2 Shafts
Speed 18 knots
Range 7000 Nautical Miles @ 15 knots
Crew 55 (6 Officers)
Commissioned 7 December 1984

LÉ ORLA P41

L.É. Orla was formerly the HMS SWIFT a British Royal Navy patrol vessel stationed in the waters of Hong Kong. She was purchased by the Irish State in 1988. She scored a notable operational success in 1993 when she conducted the biggest drug seizure in the history of the state at the time, with her interception and boarding at sea of the 65ft ketch, Brime.

Type Coastal Patrol Vessel
Length 62.6m
Beam 10m
Draught 2.7m
Main Engines 2 X Crossley SEMT- Pielstick Diesels 14,400 HP 2 Shafts
Speed 25 + Knots
Range 2500 Nautical Miles @ 17 knots
Crew 39 (5 Officers)

LÉ CIARA P42

L.É. Ciara was formerly the HMS SWALLOW a British Royal Navy patrol vessel stationed in the waters of Hong Kong. She was purchased by the Irish State in 1988. She scored a notable operational success in Nov 1999 when she conducted the second biggest drug seizure in the history of the state at that time, with her interception and boarding at sea of MV POSIDONIA of the south-west coast of Ireland.

Type Coastal Patrol Vessel
Length 62.6m
Beam 10m
Draught 2.7m
Main Engines 2 X Crossley SEMT- Pielstick Diesels 14,400 HP 2 Shafts
Speed 25 + Knots
Range 2500 Nautical Miles @ 17 knots
Crew 39 (5 Officers)

LÉ ROISIN P51

L.É. Roisin (the first of the Roisín class of vessel) was built in Appledore Shipyards in the UK for the Naval Service in 2001. She was built to a design that optimises her patrol performance in Irish waters (which are some of the roughest in the world), all year round. For that reason a greater length overall (78.8m) was chosen, giving her a long sleek appearance and allowing the opportunity to improve the conditions on board for her crew.

Type Long Offshore Patrol Vessel
Length 78.84m
Beam 14m
Draught 3.8m
Main Engines 2 X Twin 16 cly V26 Wartsila 26 medium speed Diesels
5000 KW at 1,000 RPM 2 Shafts
Speed 23 knots
Range 6000 Nautical Miles @ 15 knots
Crew 44 (6 Officers)
Commissioned 18 September 2001

LÉ NIAMH P52

L.É. Niamh (the second of the Róisín class) was built in Appledore Shipyard in the UK for the Naval Service in 2001. She is an improved version of her sister ship, L.É.Roisin

Type Long Offshore Patrol Vessel
Length 78.84m
Beam 14m
Draught 3.8m
Main Engines 2 X Twin 16 cly V26 Wartsila 26 medium speed Diesels
5000 KW at 1,000 RPM 2 Shafts
Speed 23 knots
Range 6000 Nautical Miles @ 15 knots
Crew 44 (6 Officers)
Commissioned 18 September 2001

LÉ SAMUEL BECKETT P61

LÉ Samuel Beckett is an Offshore Patrol Vessel built and fitted out to the highest international standards in terms of safety, equipment fit, technological innovation and crew comfort. She is also designed to cope with the rigours of the North-East Atlantic.

Type Offshore Patrol Vessel
Length 90.0m
Beam 14m
Draught 3.8m
Main Engines 2 x Wärtsilä diesel engines and Power Take In, 2 x shafts, 10000kw
Speed 23 knots
Range 6000 Nautical Miles @ 15 knots
Crew 44 (6 Officers)

LÉ JAMES JOYCE P62

LÉ James Joyce is an Offshore Patrol Vessel and represents an updated and lengthened version of the original RÓISÍN Class OPVs which were also designed and built to the Irish Navy specifications by Babcock Marine Appledore and she is truly a state of the art ship. She was commissioned into the naval fleet in September 2015. Since then she has been constantly engaged in Maritime Security and Defence patrolling of the Irish coast. She has also deployed to the Defence Forces mission in the Mediterranean from July to end of September 2016, rescuing 2491 persons and recovering the bodies of 21 deceased

Type Offshore Patrol Vessel
Length 90.0m
Beam 14m
Draught 3.8m
Main Engines 2 x Wärtsilä diesel engines and Power Take In, 2 x shafts, 10000kw
Speed 23 knots
Range 6000 Nautical Miles @ 15 knots
Crew 44 (6 Officers)

LÉ WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS P63

L.É. William Butler Yeats was commissioned into the naval fleet in October 2016. Since then she has been constantly engaged in Maritime Security and Defence patrolling of the Irish coast. She has also deployed to the Defence Forces mission in the Mediterranean from July to October 2017, rescuing 704 persons and recovering the bodies of three deceased.

Type Offshore Patrol Vessel
Length 90.0m
Beam 14m
Draught 3.8m
Main Engines 2 x Wärtsilä diesel engines and Power Take In, 2 x shafts, 10000kw
Speed 23 knots
Range 6000 Nautical Miles @ 15 knots
Crew 44 (6 Officers)

LÉ GEORGE BERNARD SHAW P64

LÉ George Bernard Shaw (pennant number P64) is the fourth and final ship of the P60 class vessels built for the Naval Service in Babcock Marine Appledore, Devon. The ship was accepted into State service in October 2018, and, following a military fit-out, commenced Maritime Defence and Security Operations at sea.

Type Offshore Patrol Vessel
Length 90.0m
Beam 14m
Draught 3.8m
Main Engines 2 x Wärtsilä diesel engines and Power Take In, 2 x shafts, 10000kw
Speed 23 knots
Range 6000 Nautical Miles @ 15 knots
Crew 44 (6 Officers)

Ship information courtesy of the Defence Forces

Irish Navy FAQs

The Naval Service is the Irish State's principal seagoing agency with "a general responsibility to meet contingent and actual maritime defence requirements". It is tasked with a variety of defence and other roles.

The Naval Service is based in Ringaskiddy, Cork harbour, with headquarters in the Defence Forces headquarters in Dublin.

The Naval Service provides the maritime component of the Irish State's defence capabilities and is the State's principal seagoing agency. It "protects Ireland's interests at and from the sea, including lines of communication, fisheries and offshore resources" within the Irish exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The Naval Service operates jointly with the Army and Air Corps as part of the Irish defence forces.

The Naval Service was established in 1946, replacing the Marine and Coastwatching Service set up in 1939. It had replaced the Coastal and Marine Service, the State's first marine service after independence, which was disbanded after a year. Its only ship was the Muirchú, formerly the British armed steam yacht Helga, which had been used by the Royal Navy to shell Dublin during the 1916 Rising. In 1938, Britain handed over the three "treaty" ports of Cork harbour, Bere haven and Lough Swilly.

The Naval Service has nine ships - one Helicopter Patrol Vessel (HPV), three Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV), two Large Patrol Vessel (LPV) and two Coastal Patrol Vessels (CPV). Each vessel is equipped with State of the art machinery, weapons, communications and navigation systems.

The ships' names are prefaced with the title of Irish ship or "long Éireannach" (LE). The older ships bear Irish female names - LÉ Eithne, LÉ Orla, LÉ Ciara, LÉ Roisín, and LÉ Niamh. The newer ships, named after male Irish literary figures, are LÉ Samuel Beckett, LÉ James Joyce, LÉ William Butler Yeats and LÉ George Bernard Shaw.

Yes. The 76mm Oto Melara medium calibre naval armament is the most powerful weapon in the Naval Services arsenal. The 76mm is "capable of engaging naval targets at a range of up to 17km with a high level of precision, ensuring that the Naval Service can maintain a range advantage over all close-range naval armaments and man-portable weapon systems", according to the Defence Forces.

The Fleet Operational Readiness Standards and Training (FORST) unit is responsible for the coordination of the fleet needs. Ships are maintained at the Mechanical Engineering and Naval Dockyard Unit at Ringaskiddy, Cork harbour.

The helicopters are designated as airborne from initial notification in 15 minutes during daylight hours, and 45 minutes at night. The aircraft respond to emergencies at sea, on inland waterways, offshore islands and mountains and cover the 32 counties. They can also assist in flooding, major inland emergencies, intra-hospital transfers, pollution, and can transport offshore firefighters and ambulance teams. The Irish Coast Guard volunteers units are expected to achieve a 90 per cent response time of departing from the station house in ten minutes from notification during daylight and 20 minutes at night. They are also expected to achieve a 90 per cent response time to the scene of the incident in less than 60 minutes from notification by day and 75 minutes at night, subject to geographical limitations.

The Flag Officer Commanding Naval Service (FOCNS) is Commodore Michael Malone. The head of the Defence Forces is a former Naval Service flag officer, now Vice-Admiral Mark Mellett – appointed in 2015 and the first Naval Service flag officer to hold this senior position. The Flag Officer oversees Naval Operations Command, which is tasked with the conduct of all operations afloat and ashore by the Naval Service including the operations of Naval Service ships. The Naval Operations Command is split into different sections, including Operations HQ and Intelligence and Fishery Section.

The Intelligence and Fishery Section is responsible for Naval Intelligence, the Specialist Navigation centre, the Fishery Protection supervisory and information centre, and the Naval Computer Centre. The Naval Intelligence Cell is responsible for the collection, collation and dissemination of naval intelligence. The Navigation Cell is the naval centre for navigational expertise.

The Fishery Monitoring Centre provides for fishery data collection, collation, analysis and dissemination to the Naval Service and client agencies, including the State's Sea Fisheries Protection Agency. The centre also supervises fishery efforts in the Irish EEZ and provides data for the enhanced effectiveness of fishery protection operations, as part of the EU Common Fisheries Policy. The Naval Computer Centre provides information technology (IT) support service to the Naval Service ashore and afloat.

This headquarters includes specific responsibility for the Executive/Operations Branch duties. The Naval Service Operations Room is a coordination centre for all NS current Operations. The Naval Service Reserve Staff Officer is responsible for the supervision, regulation and training of the reserve. The Diving section is responsible for all aspects of Naval diving and the provision of a diving service to the Naval Service and client agencies. The Ops Security Section is responsible for the coordination of base security and the coordination of all shore-based security parties operating away from the Naval base. The Naval Base Comcen is responsible for the running of a communications service. Boat transport is under the control of Harbour Master Naval Base, who is responsible for the supervision of berthage at the Naval Base and the provision of a boat service, including the civilian manned ferry service from Haulbowline.

Naval Service ships have undertaken trade and supply missions abroad, and personnel have served as peacekeepers with the United Nations. In 2015, Naval Service ships were sent on rotation to rescue migrants in the Mediterranean as part of a bi-lateral arrangement with Italy, known as Operation Pontus. Naval Service and Army medical staff rescued some 18,000 migrants, either pulling people from the sea or taking them off small boats, which were often close to capsizing having been towed into open water and abandoned by smugglers. Irish ships then became deployed as part of EU operations in the Mediterranean, but this ended in March 2019 amid rising anti-immigrant sentiment in the EU.

Essentially, you have to be Irish, young (less than 32), in good physical and mental health and with normal vision. You must be above 5'2″, and your weight should be in keeping with your age.

Yes, women have been recruited since 1995. One of the first two female cadets, Roberta O'Brien from the Glen of Aherlow in Co Tipperary, became its first female commander in September 2020. Sub Lieutenant Tahlia Britton from Donegal also became the first female diver in the navy's history in the summer of 2020.

A naval cadet enlists for a cadetship to become an officer in the Defence Forces. After successfully completing training at the Naval Service College, a cadet is commissioned into the officer ranks of the Naval Service as a Ensign or Sub Lieutenant.

A cadet trains for approximately two years duration divided into different stages. The first year is spent in military training at the Naval Base in Haulbowline, Cork. The second-year follows a course set by the National Maritime College of Ireland course. At the end of the second year and on completion of exams, and a sea term, the cadets will be qualified for the award of a commission in the Permanent Defence Force as Ensign.

The Defence Forces say it is looking for people who have "the ability to plan, prioritise and organise", to "carefully analyse problems, in order to generate appropriate solutions, who have "clear, concise and effective communication skills", and the ability to "motivate others and work with a team". More information is on the 2020 Qualifications Information Leaflet.

When you are 18 years of age or over and under 26 years of age on the date mentioned in the notice for the current competition, the officer cadet competition is held annually and is the only way for potential candidates to join the Defence Forces to become a Naval Service officer. Candidates undergo psychometric and fitness testing, an interview and a medical exam.
The NMCI was built beside the Naval Service base at Ringaskiddy, Co Cork, and was the first third-level college in Ireland to be built under the Government's Public-Private Partnership scheme. The public partners are the Naval Service and Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) and the private partner is Focus Education.
A Naval Service recruit enlists for general service in the "Other Ranks" of the Defence Forces. After successfully completing the initial recruit training course, a recruit passes out as an Ordinary Seaman and will then go onto their branch training course before becoming qualified as an Able Body sailor in the Naval Service.
No formal education qualifications are required to join the Defence Forces as a recruit. You need to satisfy the interview board and the recruiting officer that you possess a sufficient standard of education for service in the Defence Forces.
Recruit training is 18 weeks in duration and is designed to "develop a physically fit, disciplined and motivated person using basic military and naval skills" to "prepare them for further training in the service. Recruits are instilled with the Naval Service ethos and the values of "courage, respect, integrity and loyalty".
On the progression up through the various ranks, an Able Rate will have to complete a number of career courses to provide them with training to develop their skills in a number of areas, such as leadership and management, administration and naval/military skills. The first of these courses is the Naval Service Potential NCO course, followed by the Naval Service Standard NCO course and the Naval Service senior NCO course. This course qualifies successful candidates of Petty officer (or Senior Petty Officer) rank to fill the rank of Chief Petty Officer upwards. The successful candidate may also complete and graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Leadership, Management and Naval Studies in partnership with Cork Institute of Technology.
Pay has long been an issue for just the Naval Service, at just over 1,000 personnel. Cadets and recruits are required to join the single public service pension scheme, which is a defined benefit scheme, based on career-average earnings. For current rates of pay, see the Department of Defence website.