Ireland’s government jet reportedly lacks Israeli fog-landing system

Ireland’s new government jet was delivered without an Israeli-linked vision system that can help pilots approach airports in fog and other low-visibility conditions, an omission that The Journal attributed to Dublin’s policy against awarding defense contracts to Israeli companies.

The French-made Dassault Falcon 6X, purchased for just below 53 million euros excluding VAT, was delivered to Casement Aerodrome in Baldonnel on Dec. 16, 2025, replacing the Air Corps’ 21-year-old Learjet 45. The aircraft seats 17 people total, including up to 14 passengers, and is primarily used to transport Taoiseach Micheál Martin and government ministers, though it also has a long-range air ambulance role. 

At issue is FalconEye, a combined vision system built by Dassault in partnership with Israeli defense firm Elbit Systems that merges infrared camera imagery with synthetic terrain mapping to give pilots a clearer picture during approaches in darkness or poor weather. FalconEye is actually standard equipment on the Falcon 6X, and Dassault says the system can support instrument approaches down to a 100-foot decision height — meaning Ireland’s aircraft was delivered without a feature the jet typically comes with by default, rather than simply lacking an optional add-on. 

Multiple sources told The Journal that the system was excluded because incorporating it would have required the Irish government to enter into a written agreement with Elbit, a step procurement officials determined was “a step too far” for the state. The Irish government has not publicly confirmed that explanation. 

Asked in April whether the missing system limited the aircraft’s use, Ireland’s Department of Defence said it would not discuss the plane’s specifications but stated there were “no current limits on the operational capability of the aircraft” — the same language used to answer a parliamentary question from Labour TD Ged Nash. The Journal reported that well-placed sources disputed that characterization, saying the absence of the system does place limits on the range of options available to pilots in poor weather, and cited former Irish Air Corps pilot Kevin Phipps, who said such systems allow landings in fog that would otherwise force a diversion to another airport. 

The exclusion traces to an August 2024 policy announced by Martin, then serving as Tánaiste and foreign minister, that Ireland would cease new defense contracts with Israeli companies, a move he tied to the International Court of Justice’s July 2024 advisory opinion on Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory amid the war in Gaza.

That policy has proven difficult to apply consistently elsewhere in Ireland’s military procurement. The Journal has reported that four Airbus-built helicopters for the Irish Air Corps carry Helionix cockpit systems co-developed by Airbus and Elbit — components the outlet’s reporting found the aircraft cannot be built without. Ireland’s two CASA C295 maritime patrol aircraft, delivered in 2023, are also equipped with Israeli-made radar; a third C295, a transport variant rather than a patrol aircraft, arrived separately in October 2025. Freedom of Information requests to Ireland’s Defence Forces and national police force turned up no records detailing other projects curtailed by the policy, while the Department of Defence sought an extension on its own request, citing procurement staff annual leave. 

The story drew quick pickup from Israeli outlets. The Jerusalem Post reported on the jet’s role ferrying Martin and other officials, while Globes noted that Elbit is accused in Ireland of complicity in what the Irish government calls “genocide” in Gaza — part of a broader push by Dublin to suspend EU-Israel relations. The Times of Israel also tied the 2024 policy to the ICJ advisory opinion.

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