Greece intends to sell F-16s, Mirage 2000s and even F-4Es that it will take out of service. Who are the Potential Buyers?
The Greek Air Force will consist of approximately 40 F-35As, 40 Rafales and 84 F-16Vs. Mirage 2000-5s are decommissioned. F-4E and F-16 Block 30s will also be decommissioned.
Greece wants to modernise the Greek Air Force with sufficient and efficient fighter aircraft, while at the same time simplifying and economising the maintenance and overhaul of these aircraft.
The Greek Air Force consists of four fighter aircraft types; F-4E, F-16, Mirage 2000-5 (decommissioned) and Rafale and four different F-16 blocks; Block-30, 50, 52, 70 Viper.
In the near future, the Greek Air Force will receive 20 firm orders, but possibly a total of 40 F-35As.
30 Rafale aircraft (18 new, 12 used) have been received, possibly 10 more.
All F-16s, except the Block-30s, are being upgraded to the Block 70 F-16V Viper configuration.
The Greek Air Force will consist of approximately 40 F-35As, 40 Rafales and 84 F-16Vs.
Mirage 2000-5s are decommissioned. F-4E and F-16 Block 30s will also be decommissioned.
They intend and endeavour to sell the F-4E, Mirage 2000-5 and Block-30 aircraft that will be decommissioned, together with their spare parts and equipment stocks.
So, to whom can Greece sell these aircraft that it has taken and will take from its inventory?
They are still using a fleet of F-4Es (33 aircraft) that they modernised with the Icarus 2000 project. A potential customer to sell these aircraft does not seem likely, but it is stated that they are in search.
They will most probably sell Mirage 2000-5s, which are still capable aircraft, to India, which uses a significant number of Mirage 2000-5s, and they are conducting mutual negotiations.
Argentina and Brazil are serious potential markets for the F-16s to be decommissioned. However, countries such as Denmark, Belgium, Norway, Norway and the Netherlands, which have or will take F-16s out of service completely, are also trying to sell their aircraft to these potential buyer countries.
Another very interesting potential F-16 Block 30 buyer is the commercial air power companies that provide Aggressor (threat) air power services to the US Air Force and Naval Air Force. However, these companies are also under the radar surveillance of other countries trying to sell their decommissioned F-16s.
It is also possible that Greece will donate its F-16 Block 30s to Ukraine, but F-16 users prefer to make economic gains by selling their decommissioned F-16s together with their spare parts stocks instead of donating them to Ukraine.
The lifetime costs of fighter aircraft are very high. Mostly, the acquisition cost attracts attention, but this cost is only 30 per cent of the lifetime cost. As long as an aircraft system is kept in service, financial resources will have to be allocated to its maintenance and upkeep. As the number of aircraft types increases, it becomes more difficult to support so many different systems. Therefore, keeping the required number of aircraft without having too many types and configurations among these types will create a simple but effective air force. A simple but effective air force is the optimum option in terms of operational effectiveness and economic efficiency.
