There is a "lackadaisical" approach to passengers arriving into Ireland from abroad with regard to test and trace.
That's according to Kevin Byrne, a retired Lieutenant colonel and airport safety and security auditor.
The Oireachtas Transport Committee published its aviation report yesterday which contained 20 recommendations regarding travel ahead of Christmas.
Among the proposals were the urgent need for pre-departure testing to be in place in advance of the festive period.
The Committee said that people from red-listed EU countries shouldn't have to restrict their movements if they've got a negative COVID-19 test before departure.
Additionally, it advised that there should be a new traffic light travels system for the US and Canada and "formal talks" with the two countries to ensure Irish people can come home for Christmas.
Speaking on The Pat Kenny Show today, Lt Col Byrne said he hopes the recommendations are put into action.
He said: "We have a history of doing that in this country, having wonderful reports and then putting them on shelves.
"The committee recommends that validated pre-departure antigen testing is mandatory for passengers arriving from red or orange countries."
"The expensive PCR tests usually in place are the gold standard."
The committee said that the Government should provide all necessary support to ensure that PCR testing "is priced competitively and affordably" and that passengers should not have to pay more than €50 per test.
Lt Col Byrne said that otherwise, adding the cost of PCR tests to the flight will "kill aviation" again as business travel has "more or less died".
Tourists
He said there was a "lackadaisical" approach to passengers arriving into Ireland from abroad with regard to test and trace,
Pat Kenny regaled a story from a friend of his who regularly travels for business and who was in Dublin Aiport recently.
He saw 15 or 16 people who had arrived from Boston and none of them were wearing masks.
Similarly, Mr Byrne has a friend working at an OPW site which was visited by two American tourists from Boston who were travelling across Ireland.
He said we need to "build confidence into flying" and that plans by airlines to be at 70% capacity by June won't happen if things stay as they are now.
He added that we really need to get tourists back into Ireland and similarly Irish people need to be able to travel abroad.
The most dangerous part of flying is at the airport, he said, while the purified air on the plane means it is much safer.
