Irish pilots have said they remain opposed in principle to the deployment of firearms aboard aircraft following the insistence of the United States that all flights from some countries must have armed air marshals on board.
The Irish Air Line Pilots' Association (IALPA) said in a statement that its policy in relation to aviation security was that, where possible, all security threats are eliminated on the ground.
"The potential introduction of 'sky marshals' onto Irish-registered aircraft must in no way divert the
responsibility of Government from ensuring that such security threats are eliminated prior to the aircraft's departure.
"Since the advent of civil aviation almost a century ago, the international aviation community has invested huge effort and resources into keeping guns off aircraft, for safety and security reasons that remain valid today. In this context, we will seek to ensure that any change in this area will only be made after a comprehensive consultation process," the pilots' union said.
It said the high standards of safety in the aviation industry have been the result of years of collaboration and a very real shared ownership of responsibility for safety by all involved.
"We believe that for security to be fully effective, any changes of such fundamental significance must be the result of collaboration, and that every body with responsibility for security must consider the function and role of other parties in the process. The regime which underpins involvement and consultation in flight safety should also be the prevailing regime in flight security."
IALPA said it was committed to ensuring that Irish travellers continue to enjoy "the highest standards of both flight safety and security".
British-based pilots, meanwhile, today welcomed an Irish Government initiative that they hope will lead to a consensus among European countries on the controversial use of armed sky marshals on planes.
The Government, which took over the Presidency of the European Union on January 1st for a six-month period, has convened a meeting of transport officials in Brussels next week to seek views from member states about the use of armed guards.
The British Airline Pilots' Association (BALPA) welcomed the move and made it clear it too remained unhappy about the use of sky marshals to counter the threat of hijackings. BALPA general secretary Mr Jim McAuslan said: "There is clearly a difference in culture between the USA and Europe, and a difference of view about sky marshals.
"The Americans see sky marshals as the way forward, but many of us in Europe see them as an irrelevance. Four European nations are refusing to fly with sky marshals, as are many airlines."
BALPA said it did not want guns on aircraft and was advising pilots only to cooperate if the union had an agreement with their airline. "We welcome the Irish Government's initiative in seeking a European consensus which might be quite different from that expressed on the other side of the Atlantic," Mr McAuslan said.