Freedom of Information documents seen by Overheard show about \u20ac64,000 was spent on expenses such as refuelling and ground services as the crew of seven \u2013 four pilots and three air stewards \u2013 made their way to, around and back from the US. <\/p>\n
If not sightseeing, what were they doing there? Training, it turns out. <\/p>\n
The French-made aircraft is the pride of Baldonnel, having replaced an ageing Learjet. It has shown up in a number of news stories already: Daniel Kinahan\u2019s extradited return from Dubai and the evacuation of two potential Hantavirus sufferers from the MV Hondius in Tenerife, as well as various forms of ministerial travel. <\/p>\n
[\u00a0Soldiers\u2019 rations cut, naval radar plan paused as Defence Forces ordered to save millionsOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n The US posed a different challenge. The Government had no plane capable of transatlantic travel from 2014 until the Falcon was delivered in December 2025, so its crews had little experience of it. <\/p>\n \u201cThe training covered North Atlantic oceanic procedures and operations within United States airspace, where procedures differ from those in Europe in a number of respects,\u201d a Defence Forces spokesperson said. <\/p>\n \u201cThe routing through several locations allowed each pilot to fly different legs, ensuring that all crew received the appropriate training and experience across the full range of procedures involved.\u201d<\/p>\n With their training legs under them, the Falcon set about bringing the representatives of the State to their US appointments: Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin used it to get to the annual St Patrick\u2019s Day endurance test at the Oval Office \u2013 did you know Ireland is actually a big investor in the United States? \u2013 and this week Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee caught it to the United Nations General Assembly.<\/p>\n New technologies always take a while to find their niche, and so it is with Meta\u2019s AI-powered smart glasses, which come in Ray-Ban and Oakley versions. Helpful new audiovisual device or stealthy method of recording strangers on the street? Views vary, with Olga Cronin of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties<\/a> describing them bluntly as \u201creally creepy\u201d in the Seanad recently. <\/p>\n But they can be useful for the visually impaired, helping them to read physical documents, identify objects and otherwise navigate the world more easily. Perhaps in recognition of the possibilities, Meta<\/a> donated 15,000 pairs to Vision Ireland, which is distributing them to the blind and visually impaired people they support for free.<\/p>\n \u201cVision Ireland is immensely proud to lead the national roll-out and help ensure this innovative technology delivers meaningful and lasting impact,\u201d the charity\u2019s chief executive, Chris White, said.<\/p>\n [\u00a0With Meta\u2019s \u2018pervert glasses\u2019, we really are going through the digital looking glassOpens in new window<\/a>\u00a0]<\/p>\n Ireland is not the only country to benefit from Zuckerbergian beneficence. Mother Jones, the campaigning US magazine, last week published an article, \u201cIs Meta using disabled people to promote its glasses?\u201d Acknowledging the benefits, which Meta has highlighted in advertising in the US, it also outlines some potential concerns over data protection, surveillance and the \u201cwidespread opportunities for instantaneous filming of the general public\u201d.<\/p>\n Bans are already appearing in some contexts, including courts in New York and England, Australian swimming pools and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) offices, where operating in the shadows is preferred.<\/p>\n Wider bans, which are being discussed in various jurisdictions, will run into resistance if they appear to remove helpful aids from people who need them. <\/p>\n Irish films face cliffhanger<\/p>\n Money is simply easier to spend in joyous period after pay-day, a time of feasting, good cheer and discretionary online purchases. Overheard has been there. Batch cooking helps.<\/p>\n It emerges that Screen Ireland<\/a>, the body that promotes Irish film internationally and helps to fund it here at home, had \u201cfully allocated\u201d its production budget funding before the August rains even arrived. With 29 projects already in production by July and \u201cover 25\u201d slated for the rest of the year, they were done, a budget statement said.<\/p>\n Is this a problem? Yes: for the creatives in the trenches, it leaves a gap. Think of making a film like planning a group holiday: schedules must be checked, dates cleared, upfront money solicited and venues booked. <\/p>\n Screen Ireland declaring early will cause \u2013 and has caused, according to several people familiar with the industry \u2013 serious problems for some projects. Overheard understands that there are films that have already been approved \u2013 in theory \u2013 for funding that might have expected to receive it in the latter quarters of 2026, but will now have to wait for 2027 at least. Things will need to be cancelled and moved around. Actors may be otherwise engaged by the time the new dates come around.<\/p>\n What happened? We asked Screen Ireland, but answer came there none. <\/p>\n It\u2019s been a successful month for the blitz defence of Irish diplomacy, and the invitations to Croke Park are flying around like soundly driven sliotars. <\/p>\n Donald Trump appeared either unaware of or uninterested in Gaelic games, but for the more culturally astute likes of UK prime minister Andy Burnham and the New York mayor Zohran Mamdani, the All-Ireland is a growing attraction. Burnham (Louth), who last week brought Canadian prime minister Mark Carney (Mayo) to an Everton match, went as far as to ask to attend himself after his meeting with Miche\u00e1l Martin.<\/p>\n![\"Mark](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/VERV67EE2KULKNVGB2LLBWBKUM.jpg\")
Mark Zuckerberg unveils Meta glasses at an event in 2025. Photographer: David Paul Morris\/Bloomberg Is Meta sight-washing its controversial specs?<\/p>\n![\"UK](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/I62G5GLDPN32SFQVMG5GM22WB4.jpg\")
UK prime minister Andy Burnham, Canon Patrick J McNally and Taoiseach Miche\u00e1l Martin at the Brian Boru Irish Club in Ashton-in-Makerfield last week. Photograph: Oli Scarff – WPA Pool\/Getty Get off the hill<\/p>\n