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your Defence Forces Newsletter NEW GOC AIR CORPS Brigadier General Seán Clancy is the new General Officer Com- manding, Irish Air Corps and Director of Military Aviation with effect from 1st July 2017. Brigadier General Seán Clancy joined the Irish Defence Forces in 1984 as a cadet and com- menced his flight training in 1986. He has flown both fixed and rotary wing aircraft and has accumulated nearly 5,000 flight hours. He is a qualified type and instrument-rating examiner, a qualified flight simulator instructor and has most recently held type, instrument and NVG ratings on the AW139. He has served in appointments including Squadron Commander, Wing Commander, Senior Staff Officer Operations, Senior Staff Officer Personnel and Chief of Air Staff Support in Air Corps Headquarters. Prior to promotion he has served as Director of Strategic Planning Branch on the Chief of Defence's Staff, De- fence Headquarters. Brigadier General Seán Clancy has spent a considerable period of his career as a Search and Rescue pilot and was the commander of the crew who received the Marine Medal for Meritorious Service in 2002. He has served for a year with the European Union Force in Bosnia as the military advi- sor to the Force Commander and spent two years as a non- permanent member of SHIRBRIG, the UN standby Brigade. Lansdowne Road Agreement (LRA) Update – Pay Increases – Payment Dates Recent Pay Increases: In recent weeks qualifying members have received the following pay increases:- • 5th July 2017 - Increases of 2.5% in annualised salary for members earning up to €24,000 and Increases of 1% in annualised salary for those earning between €24,001to €31,000. • 19th July 2017 - Increase of €19.16 per week for those members earning up to €65,000. INFORMATION TAKEN FROM PDFORRA INFORMATION CICULAR NO. 29/2017 Maritime Search and Rescue T he Casa CN235, the Air Corps' 23 year old Maritime Patrol Aircraft, is the workhorse of 101 "Surveillance and Airlift Squadron". The Squadron is re- sponsible for maritime surveillance and logistics, including fisheries and en- vironmental monitoring but it also has a vital role in maritime search and rescue. This was recently evident on the morning of July 21st at when "Charlie253" was tasked to provide Search and Rescue (SAR) Top Cover by the Irish Coast Guard for a small upturned craft with 2 persons on board, 165 miles West of Valentia. Heavy seas are be- lieved to have capsized the boat and the crew, attempting to row from Canada to Ireland, had been on top of their upturned boat for a number of hours when an emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) attached to the craft activated. Charlie 253 arrived on the scene to find the EPIRB floating in the water with no boat in sight. The Coast Guard helicopter is limited by fuel when operating at this distance from shore. The Casa's radar ensured there was no time wasted in completing a widespread search by locating the upturned boat some distance away. allowing the helicopter to commence winching operations as soon as possible. Charlie 252 continued to provide Top Cover and Communications to the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre, as the helicop- ter brought the two casualties to University Hospital Kerry, where they recovered from their ordeal and early stages of hypothermia. As the fleet of two Casa CN235s approach 40,000 flying hours between them it is a timely reminder of the daily protection they of- fer the state, as the Squadron Motto states "Shúile Thar an Fharraige" Eyes Over The Sea. THE MEDICAL CORPS FIRST AID RESPONSE HANDBOOk I n developing and implementing Induction Medical Training, CMU Medical School recognised the require- ment for a high quality, low volume and niche publica- tion that would support the learner before, during and after both the initial First Aid Response Course, refresher training and TOET. Through a commercial partnership, CMU Medical School has developed, purchased and is now in the course of distributing a First Aid Response Manual. This FAR Manual is derived from a commercial standard that is based on the Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPGs) issued by the Pre-hospital Emergency Care Council (PHECC), but has been, in consultation with the publisher, developed to serve the requirements of soldiers undertak- ing the FAR course. It is hoped that this manual will serve as an ongoing reference to those who have completed the course, and that ultimately, it will contribute to safe, effec- tive and potentially life-saving patient care MINGy PRAyERBOOK Following the reissue of the 'Mingy Prayerbook' in 2015, the prayerbook has now been released as an app on Apples appstore and Google's playstore. The app has such features as: 'Origins of the word mingy', 'A Selection of Prayers' and 'Marking Time' to name but a few. It also has a link the Chaplaincy website. The app is free on both platforms and is 159mb in size to download to your phone or tablet and was developed by Sandor Gera. The print issue of the Prayerbook is still available from all chaplains to members of the Defence Forces and for their families.

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