Almost 66,000 US troops pass through Shannon Airport in 2020

'One US soldier going through Shannon is one too many,' said RISE TD Paul Murphy. 

The 66,000 troops using Shannon Airport this year is lower than the last two, but higher than any in the period 2014-2017. Picture: Eamon Ward

Just under 66,000 US troops passed through Shannon Airport in the first 10 months of 2020, a decline from the numbers who passed through the facility in 2019.

However, this is more in 10 months than in any year between 2014 and 2017.

In total, according to a parliamentary question response to RISE TD Paul Murphy from transport minister Eamon Ryan, the total number of US military personnel transiting through the airport until the end of October this year was 65,965. In 2019, in the full year, it was 93,852 and in 2018 it was 86,653. 

However, Independent TD for Galway West Catherine Connolly has pointed out that the 2020 figure is more than the total in any full year in the period 2014-2017.

Independent Galway West TD Catherine Connolly. Picture: Collins Photos

The use of the airport as a transit point for US troops has long been controversial, but additional concerns were raised in the summer over fears that soldiers from the US could spread Covid-19.

Mr Murphy said the overall figure was largely irrelevant. He said that the use of the airport at all was not acceptable and showed that Ireland's formal neutrality was a myth.

"One US soldier going through Shannon is one too many," he said.

"The US shouldn't be using our airports to transit to wars in the Middle East. If you're in Afghanistan and Iraq, where you're living with the consequences of this, then this is a very live issue. 

"The formal neutrality of the Irish State is a problem for some of the more hawkish elements of parties like Fine Gael who would like to be more aligned to NATO.

For me, Ireland is not really neutral, it aligns itself with the likes of NATO. Ireland should not back up US imperialism. 

"We should withdraw from PESCO and stop the use of our airports and airspace."

Mr Ryan had previously told Ms Connolly that the number of weapons carried by these personnel was restricted under the 1944 Chicago Convention.

"The carriage of munitions of war is prohibited on any civil aircraft in Irish sovereign territory/airspace and on Irish-registered civil aircraft, wherever they may be, unless an exemption for such carriage is granted by the Minister for Transport."

The latest figures from the Department published up to August show that there were 784 successful applications to carry “munitions of war” on civil aircraft this year, with 292 flights originating from Shannon.

In a subsequent Dáil interaction with Ms Connolly, Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney said that there are safeguards in place on the use of the airport and that he would not "make a significant issue of this with the incoming administration in the US unless there is very good reason to do so".

Ms Connolly said that the "very good reason" was that Ireland could not "promote peace while we facilitate war".

"It is not possible to advance those principles and policies if we are facilitating war, and we are facilitating war," she said. 

"Almost three million soldiers have passed through Shannon Airport since 2002. Some 475 American planes have landed and 734 overflight permissions were granted in 2019 alone. 

"It is not possible to promote peace if we are facilitating war. "