If the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Brain Cowen, had thought hard enough he would have gone to Dublin Airport and not Baldonnel on Tuesday morning and so caught the flight to Farranfore for the special Cabinet meeting in Killarney.
For some reason (possibly not unconnected to the fact that Bertie Ahern lives in Drumcondra) when the Taoiseach travels, the Government jet always leaves from Dublin Airport (that is, it flies from the Air Corps base to Collinstown to pick him up). Other ministers fly from Baldonnel.
The passengers on the Kerry special were Ahern, Mary Harney, Charlie McCreevy, Michael McDonnell, Noel Dempsey, Michael Woods, Seamus Brennan, Bobby Molloy and five officials including press officers Joe Lennon and Iarla Mongey. The empty seat was reserved for Cowen.