The Court of Appeal has dismissed CHC Ireland DAC’s appeal against an order allowing the Minister for Transport to sign a contract with Bristow Ireland Limited to provide the Irish Coast Guard’s aviation service. The decision concerns only whether the contract award can proceed while CHC’s judicial review challenge is pending; it does not decide whether the procurement was lawful.
The Minister selected Bristow as the successful tenderer on 31 May 2023. CHC, the incumbent provider and an unsuccessful tenderer, began proceedings on 14 June. That automatically suspended the Minister’s power to conclude the contract. On 25 July, the High Court lifted the suspension and permitted the Minister to sign, but stayed its order pending an appeal. The Court of Appeal heard the appeal on 27 July and indicated the following morning that it would dismiss it. The judgment giving reasons was delivered on 2 October 2023.
The appeal turned on the balance of justice, with the court required to weigh the risks while treating CHC as if it were seeking an injunction to prevent the contract being signed. The parties accepted, for this interim application only, that CHC had a fair issue to be tried. The procurement challenge itself remains unresolved.
The Court of Appeal said the central concern was continuity of the life-saving search and rescue and helicopter emergency medical service. The new contract is due to begin on 1 July 2025. The court accepted there was a risk Bristow might not complete its complex transition plan by then. But it found that continuing the suspension would prevent Bristow from starting the plan on schedule and was likely to cause a lengthy, uncertain delay. That delay could put Bristow’s tender prices and supplier arrangements at risk, and could leave it unable to perform the contract.
CHC argued that it could continue the service by extending its existing contract, potentially with a fixed-wing aircraft service. The court did not decide whether such an extension would be lawful. It found a real risk that an extension lasting a year or more, together with the additional service, could amount to a substantial contract modification requiring a new procurement process. The court considered that uncertainty a significant risk to continued service.
The court also accepted that losing the contract could lead CHC Ireland to cease business in Ireland and that damages might not adequately compensate it. It held that this concern did not outweigh the public interest in continuity of the service and the risks associated with delay. It affirmed the High Court’s decision and refused CHC’s appeal, leaving the automatic suspension lifted. The judgment did not resolve CHC’s allegations about the procurement, including alleged unequal treatment, disclosure of confidential information or political influence.