45th Infantry Group return home to Baldonnel

Members of the 45th Infantry Group returned to Casement Aerodrome, Baldonnel, on 21st of November, following a six month tour of duty based in South Lebanon as part of the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL). The 181 personnel travelled on board Jordan Aviation Boeing 767-204(ER), JY-JAG, which arrived as the JAV7457 at 11:26. The troops drawn primarily from the Defence Forces Training Centre based in the Curragh Camp, Co. Kildare with representatives also from the Air Corps and Naval Service were be met by their families and friends. Their replacements, the 47th Infantry Group, are drawn from 1 Brigade , departed at 14:18 to their area of operations using the same aircraft and flight number to continue Ireland’s ongoing commitment to restoring peace and security in the region. The story of Irish participation in South Lebanon is a story of continuity and commitment to a mission, a mandate and a people. The Irish Defence Forces have been involved with the United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon (UNIFIL) since its inception in 1978 and 47 Defence Forces personnel sadly lost their lives there in that period. We congratulate the 45th Infantry Group and all our forces overseas on a job well done and wish them a safe and happy Christmas.

About the Author

Jim Lee Jim has had a life-long interest in military matters and aviation. Initially, he fused both of these interests together with a passion for military aviation, initially as a photographer. He has travelled extensively over the years and has been the guest of many European air forces, plus the air forces of the United States, Russia and others throughout the world. His first introduction to journalism coincided with an interest in the civil aviation industry was when he initially wrote for and later edited, ‘Aviation Ireland’, the club magazine of the Aviation Society of Ireland. Jim was a contributor to Flying in Ireland since its inception over 10 years ago and is now a key contributor to this site. He has also contributed items for a number of other aviation magazines and has produced a number of detailed contributions to Government policy documents, most recently the Irish Government’s White Paper on Defence. He is also deeply involved in the local community and voluntary sector and has worked both in local government and central government.