France and Greece have reached an agreement for the latter to acquire 18 Rafale fighter jets of which 10 will be sold and the remaining 8 will be given away as ‘donation.’
According to Greek local media reports, the contract between the French and Greek governments is at an advanced stage, which will see the Hellenic Air Force add a whole Rafale squadron to their existing fleet of Lockheed F-16 Fighting Falcons, Dassault Mirage 2000s, and McDonnell-Douglas F-4 Phantom II. The deal is reported to be completed by the end of the year.
The jets would be fully armed versions ready for immediate deployment. Recently Greek and Turkish F-16 jets were briefly engaged in a 'dogfight,' reports said.
The Dassault Rafale is a French twin-engine, canard-delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft equipped with a wide range of weapons, the Rafale is intended to perform air supremacy, interdiction, aerial reconnaissance, ground support, in-depth strike, anti-ship strike, and nuclear deterrence missions.
It is fitted with two Snecma M88 engines, each capable of providing up to 50 kN (11,250 lbs) of dry thrust and 75 kN (16,900 lbs) with afterburners. The M88 enables the Rafale to supercruise while carrying four missiles and one drop tank. Although not a stealth aircraft, the Rafale was designed for a reduced radar cross-section (RCS) and infrared signature.
The 10 brand new fighters that are to be purchased will come from the stock being built for the Egyptian Air Force. The two governments are expecting to reach an agreement with Egypt to divert 10 of 20 jets meant for Egypt to Greece. The remaining 10 for Egypt would be delivered later.
The eight planes that will be given as a “gift” are used jets from French Air Force inventory. The Greek air force primarily consists of old F-16 jets which will be modernized by the United States to the F-16V. However, the deal was signed only in 2019 with Lockheed Martin and it will not be until 2022 when the first modernized F-16 rolls out.
Recently Turkish F-16s and Greek F-16’s were on a dogfight on the Mediterranean Sea. According to unconfirmed information, eight Turkish F-16 and six F-16 from Greece were on a dog fight. Two Turkish F-16 did not take part at dog fight as two French Rafale were also in the near region. Two Turkish F-16s waited for Rafale approach but they did not.
