Carrier-based aircraft

On Thursday at noon, Athenian visitors and residents heard a deafening noise, which, as some may have noticed, came from three fleeting F-35 aircraft of the United States Air Force.

The F-35s had a permit to fly over the Acropolis at a 5,000 feet altitude.

Τhe United Arab Emirates Air Force aerobatic display team and two Typhoons arrived in Athens on Monday to take part in the 11th Athens Flying Week 2023 taking place on September 2-3.

The American commitment to reinforce Greece with fifth-generation fighter jets, along with the sale of a number of more sophisticated F-16s, is indicative, at least for now, of Washington's wish to maintain a certain balance of air power in the Aegean.

The US State Department has approved the sale of F-35 fighter jets and related ammunition and equipment to the Czech Republic, the Pentagon announced yesterday, as quoted by Reuters.

The deal is worth 5.62 billion dollars.

Washington's concern over upsetting Turkey and jeopardizing Sweden's NATO membership appears to have drawn the Greek F-35 issue into the mix, delaying the official congressional notification, Kathimerini understands, until after the Vilnius Summit in July.

Greece will get delivery of the first F-35 stealth multirole aircraft by 2028, "if everything proceeds according to plan," former Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos told TV station Skai Friday.

Greek F-16 aircraft will fly this week over Bulgaria as part of the joint flight training "Thracian Star".

During the flight training, air combat with medium-altitude fighters, defensive and offensive air operations, tactical interceptions, visual aerial reconnaissance, low- and ultra-low-altitude route flights, close air support, search and conditional strikes on land (sea) objects.

The U.S. agreed Monday to sell Türkiye $259 million in software it has long sought to upgrade its fleet of U.S. F-16 fighter jets. State Department approval of the sale comes about two weeks after Türkiye dropped its objections to Finland joining NATO.

Romania will purchase F-35 Lightning II fighter jets from the US, the Supreme National Defense Council decided at its meeting today, BTA reported.

Members of Romania's Supreme Council of National Defense approved the so-called "Concept for achieving operational air defense capability with fifth-generation multi-role aircraft", announced the administration of President Klaus Iohannis.

The Greek Defense Ministry is expected to decide next week whether Athens will propose to Lockheed Martin the inclusion of SSI (security, supply, information) and infrastructure programs in the F-35 fighter jets package with the participation of the Greek defense industry.