€46m Kildare HQ for Ranger Wing welcomed
Tanaiste Simon Harris and Minister Martin Heydon share a joke with a senior officer.
A NEW €46m HQ for the Army Ranger Wing was given the green light by Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Simon Harris last week, a move welcomed by his colleague Kildare South TD, and Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon.
The new base for the Army Ranger Wing was a key recommendation made in the ‘Commission on the Future of the Defence Forces’ which outlined that there is a clear requirement to develop enhanced infrastructure to support the planned expansion of the commando unit.
Phase one of the project will involve the development of a new HQ building, followed by specifically designed training and operational facilities tailored for the army rangers' needs. Further phases of the overall project will see the delivery of accommodation facilities, a gymnasium and office space.
The Army Ranger Wing has engaged in high-profile operations, including the extraction of Irish citizens in Kabul after the return to power of the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2021.
Army Ranger Wing members also executed a dramatic military intervention in 2023 by fast-roping down from a helicopter, securing a container ship, which was subsequently found to possess over 2.2 tonnes of cocaine.
“The Army Ranger Wing is a highly trained and sought-after unit within the defence forces, and they deserve, along with all of our Defence Force personnel across all services, fit-for-purpose infrastructure to enable them to carry out their duties,” said Minister Heydon.
Minister Heydon added: “Our Defence Forces are seeing record investment by this government into their operations."
Recently, the new € 5.4 million Cadet Training School and machinery yard were opened by An Tánaiste at the Curragh, with works continuing on the € 8.6 million Communications and Information Services (CIS) Workshop also on the Curragh.
Minister Heydon said these investments "are proof of this government's ongoing commitment to strengthening Oglaigh na hEireann, ensuring it is a modern, fit for purpose military and enhancing the facilities available at the Curragh".
“As a TD for Kildare South, which houses the Curragh Camp, I am acutely aware of the bravery, commitment, and professionalism of our Defence Forces, and remain as committed today as when first elected, to ensuring that they are adequately catered for. I am also enormously proud of the Curragh and I will continue to push for further investment there to ensure state-of-the-art facilities and infrastructure to match our forces," he concluded.
