Personnel crisis leaves Naval service 'living on borrowed time'

Source from the Representative Association of Commissioned Officer said that the LÉ William Butler Yeats didn't go on sea patrol yesterday because it was short a technical specialist. Picture: Defence Forces

The Naval Service is “living on borrowed time” with just 709 fully-trained people left and the expectation a further ship could be tied soon due to the deepening personnel crisis.

That's the view of RACO (Representative Association of Commissioned Officer) sources who told the Irish Examiner that one ship, LÉ William Butler Yeats, didn't go on sea patrol yesterday because it was short a technical specialist.