330 personnel currently based at Aiken Barracks in Dundalk

Aiken Barracks

There are currently 330 personnel based at Aiken Barracks in Dundalk.

That’s according to Minister for Defence Simon Coveney, who was questioned on the matter recently by Deputy Denis Naughton, who raised the issue of the number of soldiers from the 27^th Battalion who were regularly performing operation duties in the Dublin area.

Minister Coveney said that Aiken Barracks has an establishment strength of 341 personnel, with the current strength figure standing at 330.

He said the government was committed to maintaining this figure and “to this end targeted general service recruitment will continue”.

In relation to the number of soldiers performing operational duties in Dublin, Minister Coveney said: “On average per month, operational duties in the Dublin area account for 130 man-days provided by staff permanently based in Aiken Barracks. As the duties normally require the conduct of wide-ranging familiarisation patrols throughout the greater Dublin area, the execution of such duties has the advantage of providing the units involved with improved security situational awareness of the capital.”