Greece Is Putting Its Older F-16s, Mirage 2000s Up For Sale; Armenia May Buy Them

Paul Iddon

Forbes

It is official. As part of its extensive overhaul of its armed forces, Greece will offer some of its older, used fighter jets for sale. But will any countries want these ex-Hellenic Air Force aircraft?

“We have a cartload of different types of aircraft. We have F-4s, Mirage 2000-5s, Block 30 F-16s, Block 50 F-16s, Block 52 F-16s, Viper F-16s and Rafales. We cannot carry on this way. The F-4s need to be retired and, if possible, sold. The Mirage 2000-5 is an exceptionally capable plane and can be sold. The Block 30 F-16s need to be sold. And I think we will be able to sell the [Mirage 2000-5 and Block 30 F-16s],” Defense Minister Nikos Dendias said on Mar. 25 in an interview for Greek television.

George Tzogopoulos, a senior fellow at the Centre International de Formation Européenne, a French policy research institute, noted that Greece’s ongoing modernization of its armed forces is the context within the decision to sell these older aircraft should be seen.

“Defense Minister Nikos Dendias has announced this indeed, so it is the official policy,” he told me.

Dendias’s comments followed a report in Greek media in early February revealing the HAF General Staff is looking to sell 18 Mirage 2000EGM/BGM fighters that had previously served the 332 Hawk Squadron for 30 years.

While many countries have sought second-hand fighter jets in recent years, there may be limited interest in these older airframes. Even though Greece’s F-4 Phantom IIs have received upgrades over the years, there is likely little interest in them considering their advanced age, which is why Dendias admitted they need to be retired if Athens cannot sell them. Turkey is keeping its modernized F-4s in service until the end of this decade, but Ankara is doing so out of necessity.

 

Greece, Cyprus, and Armenia have recently increased military cooperation. In light of this, Armenia, which has sought to diversify its military procurement, could be a possible contender for these aircraft.

Yerevan previously bought four brand new Su-30SM Flanker fighter jets from Russia in 2019. However, these jets played no role in the 2020 war with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh.

It’s unclear if Armenia might seek to match Azerbaijan’s reported acquisition of JF-17 Thunder fighters from Pakistan with these ex-HAF jets, especially if it could get them at an affordable price.

“Greece and Armenia have enjoyed a high level of defense collaboration for decades,” Tzogopoulos said.

“If Dassault Aviation and the French government have no objection, Armenia shows an interest and has the capacity to cover expenses, it will arguably be a potential client.”