78 Mr. L. Burke asked the Minister for Defence if any proposals for the commercial use of Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, have been received or invited; the extent to which Defence Forces personnel will be involved in assisting or in any way subsidising these commercial ventures; the military resources which would be put at the disposal of commercial operators; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4867/99]

86 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Defence the approaches, if any, he has had from commercial interests to operate Baldonnel Aerodrome on a shared basis; if he will make a statement in this regard; and the value of the land which constitutes the aerodrome. [5039/99]

183 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence if any proposals for the commercial use of Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, have been received or invited; the extent to which Defence Forces personnel would be involved in assisting or in any way subsidising these commercial ventures; the military resources which would be put at the disposal of commercial operators; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4923/99]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 78, 86 and 183 together.

A number of approaches have been made in the past year by private concerns regarding the possibility of the extension of the utilisation of Baldonnel for light aircraft/private jet use. As the bulk of military operations are conducted there, in particular basic flying training flights, the base could not be considered suitable for use by commercial airlines with scheduled services. In the circumstances the question of the deployment of military personnel to assist in the operation of commercial ventures at Baldonnel has not arisen. I might add that any proposals for the greater use of Baldonnel for the provision of a non-military aviation service are appropriate for consideration by the Minister for Public Enterprise.

The value of the land at Casement Aerodrome has not been assessed to date.