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In the next three years, the acquisition by the Greek Air Force of the French Rafale fighters will be completed. The first six fighter jets will be available by the end of 2021, the next six by the end of 2022, and in the summer of 2023 the Air Force expects to have a total of 18 Rafale jets at its disposal.
Details of the negotiations and procurement procedures for the French Rafale fighters will be at the center of tomorrow’s meeting of the special standing committee on weapons programs and contracts in Parliament.
The first four Greek Air Force pilots will go to France early in the new year for aircraft training.
The agreement schedule
Since September of this year, during the presentation of government priorities by the TIF Forum in Thessaloniki, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced measures to directly strengthen the Armed Forces both in personnel and operations through the purchase and upgrade of equipment and equipment. modernization of the Greek defense industry.
In this context, the Prime Minister announced that the Air Force will immediately proceed with the acquisition of a squadron of 18 Rafale aircraft to replace the old Mirage. Three months later, Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ commitment becomes a reality with coordinated and targeted actions, as the acquisition of the aircraft is a large and complex weapons program. For this to happen, the Minister of National Defense, Nikos Panagiotopoulos, held successive and extensive conversations with the French Minister of Defense, Florence Parley.
At the same time, the competent authorities proceeded to approve the supply of 18 Rafale aircraft. Of these, six -two two-seaters and four single-seaters- will be new while twelve will be used (two two-seaters and ten single-seaters). The aircraft will be acquired by the French Air Force, along with the necessary weapons, support equipment, spare parts and subsequent support services.
Cost and equipment
The total cost of the plane is 1,920 million euros for the 18 planes and 400 million euros for their weapons. Aircraft weapons include Meteor guided missiles, as well as necessary upgrades to existing missiles (Mica, Scalp, and Exocet) for use on new aircraft.
Greece is acquiring new and used Rafale aircraft based on immediate delivery, in order to increase the operational capacity of the Air Force in a short period of time. At the same time, in this way, costs are significantly reduced to be able to allocate resources to other weapons systems of the three branches of the Armed Forces that are necessary.
What is Rafale
The Rafale is a multi-role aircraft, capable of performing a variety of missions simultaneously. It is the most modern and combative of the European defense industry. Rafale can transfer the special weapons that already exist in the Greek arsenal, without the need for new investments in infrastructure and technical capabilities.
The arrival time of the fighters
– The first six used aircraft will be delivered to the Air Force six months after the signing of the corresponding contract, in June 2021. The arrival fee will be one per month.
– Six new aircraft will be delivered twenty months after the contract is signed at a rate also one per month.
– The last six used Rafale aircraft will be received within 26 months of signing the contract.
It should be noted that the French side met the Air Force requirements regarding the condition of the aircraft used. In the same direction, the manufacturer Dassault offers the guarantee of its good operation.
Mitsotakis: next is the weaponry
“Never before has such a complex and important weapons program been carried out with such speed and efficiency,” Kyriakos Mitsotakis stressed in Parliament on Tuesday, announcing the signing in the coming days in Athens of the agreement for the supply of 18 Rafale .
He reiterated that they will proceed with the supply of frigates, drones, the modernization of F-16s, the supply of modern equipment for the Armed Forces and the recruitment of 15,000 professionals from all specialties in a period of 5 years. He spoke of “specific forecasts in this year’s budget, almost 5,500 million for National Defense, increased by 57% compared to 2019.”
Source: ΑΜΠΕ – skai.gr
