Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan has said the Government is looking at the mechanisms of how to police and take down drones that are causing disruption at Dublin Airport.
Flights at the airport were suspended for a time yesterday evening due to drone activity in the area.
They were suspended at 8.22pm, but the all-clear was given just before 9pm and flights then resumed. There were no flight diversions.
Airport operator daa said An Garda Síochána was immediately advised.
It was the latest in a series of disruptions at the airport due to drone activity.
Mr Ryan said he met daa and other regulatory authorities today and that they are committed to doing everything they can to stop, what he described, as a real risk.
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"This is a real danger, this is a real crime," Mr Ryan said.
"The justice system will be carrying out further investigations and we are working with justice [department] looking at other mechanisms where we can police and take down drones, but it's not an easy issue to address.
"We've seen this at airports right across Europe but absolutely it's at centre stage of all of the Government's efforts, particularly from the justice and defence side because this is a criminal act."
Mr Ryan said that due to safety rules at airports you cannot just shoot things down.
"There are international systems which we are looking at to interfere with their own communication systems to bring them down but this is not an easy operation," he said.
"It's evolving and we're working with the Department of Defence particularly who have the key responsibility when it comes to such operations."
Earlier, Ryanair called on the minister to "do something" to stop drone closures at the airport.
In a statement, Ryanair said: "Dublin Airport has closed again today for the fifth time in four weeks due to drone disruptions, causing multiple delays and disrupting/delaying hundreds of passengers."
The airline is calling on Mr Ryan to "do something - anything - to protect Ireland's main airport from these drone disruptions".
It said other EU airports have "effective drone-prevention measures in place" and questioned why such measures cannot be brought in in Ireland.
Aer Lingus described the drone activity as "unacceptable".
It added: "It is very concerning that repeated incidents of drone activity are taking place in Dublin Airport.
"The Plan for Aviation Safety which contains actions to address the risks of drone infringements, and which has already been published, must now be progressed as a matter of urgency."
President of the Irish Air Line Pilots Association Captain Evan Cullen said the Government has "sat on their hands" and failed to enforce legislation around drone use.
Speaking on RTÉ's News at One, Captain Cullen said that in 2017, the association raised it with various stakeholders that "any regulations at that time were inadequate and that there was no enforcement".
He said there has been "no major improvement" since then.
"A drone can take out a jet engine in a matter of seconds," he said. "It also can penetrate the windscreen of a cockpit and therefore kill the pilots while in flight.
"These are very, very serious threats to aircraft. They are not toys."
Captain Cullen said the regulation that banned the use of drones around hospital helipads "was withdrawn lately and there is nothing in its place", and that areas used for refueling search and rescue aircraft during live operations "are not protected against drones".
