The airways have become too internationalised for him. He remembered air travel as being, in his eyes, dominated by green. The green of Aer Lingus. This would be his first contact with it, shortly after the end of the Second World War, and for decades after. Then this old geezer recently had tickets for the South of France bought for him. He would, of course, be flying to Paris (Charles de Gaulle) by Aer Lingus, then on from Orly by Air France or Air Inter. First shock: he boards a plane at Dublin which is City Jet, not Aer Lingus. At Orly he takes a machine called something or other TAT, which turns out to be connected to British Airways. Same on the return. On another ocasion he flies to Geneva by, he is told, Aer Lingus which now goes there every day of the week. But the propellor plane he takes belongs to Air Engeadine or something like that, he can't remember. Fine, as far as the flying and the internal comfort of the plane is concerned; indeed in a plane for some thirty people there are seats of great comfort and elegance. The service and atmosphere and the flight are beyond fault. But where has Aer Lingus gone? And is he coming a dinosaur, a bigot?
Which reminded an old Irish Press hand of a story told of de Valera. An enterprising reporter who had flown somewhere on a Swiss-air plane, was much impressed by the then uniform of the air hostesses or stewardesses. They worse plain white outfits, looking not unlike nurses. The reporter wrote a paragraph for the daily column in the paper which was shared by several of the staff, indicating that he thought this a good thing. It introduced a note, in his view, of clinical efficiency which he liked. Maybe, he wrote, there was an idea for our own airline.
At this time, Fianna Fail was in opposition, and so Dev felt it not incorrect for him to attend Board Meetings of The Irish Press. He was incensed at this paragraph. "What fool", he asked the Editor "wants us to do away with the lovely green costumes of our lovely Irish girls on our national airline?". He was, presumably told the name of the fool. But there the matter ended. You have to agree that Dev had a point.