The first six Rafale fighter jets, out of a total of 24 ordered from France by Greece, landed on Wednesday, January 19, at the Greek Air base in Tanagra to join the 332 Squadron. The Franco-Greek contract represents the first sale of the Rafale in Europe.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Minister of National Defence Nikos Panagiotopoulos, the Chief of the General Staff of National Defence (GEETHANOS) Floros, the Chief of the General Staff of the Hellenic Air Force (GAF), Rear Admiral Georgios Blioumis and the French Ambassador to Athens, Patrick Mezonav attended the ceremony in Tanagra.
The first six Rafale fighter jets of the Air Force land in Tanagra today, Wednesday, January 19. The French fighters depart from Istria, France, for the 114th Battle Wing. Two of the six Rafale that Greece received today are two-seater to be used for the training of cadets, while the other four are single-seater. The training of eight Greek pilots and 50 aircraft technicians has already been completed, which took place at the Meriniak base on French soil by personnel of the construction company Dassault.
Athens signed a contract with Paris a year ago, worth around 2.5 billion euros, to deliver 18 Rafale – 12-second hand and six new planes. It then announced in September 2021 the purchase of six additional aircraft to strengthen its defence and its partnership with France. Greece will procure 24 Rafale fighter jets at a total cost of 3.3 billion euros.
The aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation delivered the first used Rafale to Greece in July 2021, taken from the French Air Force fleet like the 11 others to come.
For France, the Franco-Greek contract represents the first sale of the Rafale in Europe. At the end of May, Croatia followed with 12 used aircraft. The United Arab Emirates (80 aircraft), Qatar (36 aircraft), Egypt (54) and India (36) are the other international Rafale customers.
The Rafale fighters have a range of 2,800 miles and a large fuel capacity, two engines, are equipped with modern and powerful electronic scanning radar, and can carry two Exocet air to surface anti-ship missiles.
