Greece to add powerful AGM-88E AARGM anti-radar missiles to its arsenal
Written by Stavros Ioannidis – [email protected] – SOURCE: POLITICAL –
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A race to increase the availability of the Air Force’s valuable C-130 transport aircraft begins, after the “green light” of the competent Committee of the Parliament.
According to reports, three aircraft will be flown to Israel to undergo factory maintenance and be “flyable”, giving “breathing space” to the Armed Forces that have long been forced to transport troops and materials by other means or even the ships of the line. The transport of the C-130s to Israel, however, may hide unpleasant surprises, as it will be done by watercraft and in order for the aircraft to fit, their wings will have to be removed. This movement can carry significant risks, such as, for example, the inability to reposition the wings due to the structural deformations they have suffered from the countless hours they have “written” in the air.
If these fears are confirmed, then the cost of restoration will be very high, since the plane will be made “new” before it is returned to the Air Force. The political and military leadership of the Ministry of National Defense took this difficult decision which is a one-way street, especially since the ODA is unable to maintain the shuttles that have been stuck for years on the Tanagra track. The picture there resembles an aircraft “graveyard” with many C-130s, C-27s, Super Pumas and P-3s exposed to the weather, even to the fauna of the area. In fact, GEETHA had a ready plan for their rehabilitation from 2020 and if it had been adopted immediately, today the situation would be much better.
In addition to the three aircraft that will be transferred to Israel, one more will be repaired in Portugal and if what was announced a few weeks ago by ODA is true, two more will be delivered to the Air Force at the end of the year. How important these aircraft are is well known in the government and this is the reason that led Kyriakos Mitsotakis to convene a meeting in mid-May on the gloomy picture of the transport fleet.
In the Air Force, however, they were informed with relief of the Parliament’s approval for the C-130 program, however, the future of the C-27 remains uncertain, where solutions are being sought for the signing of a contract followed by support, while it is far behind the schedules the Navy’s P-3 naval cooperation aircraft modernization program.
Another important supply was contained in the “package” of equipment that received the approval of the Special Committee of the Parliament.
Greece will add to its arsenal the powerful AGM-88E AARGM anti-radar missiles, which are an “answer” to Ankara’s Russian-made S-400 anti-aircraft systems. Although their actual range is classified information, estimates speak of a range greater than the S-400.
This means that an aircraft can launch the missile without being harmed by the anti-aircraft missile, and then the AGM-88E will follow the source of the electromagnetic radiation emission, i.e. the S-400’s radar, and neutralize it.
The Air Force had the older version in its arsenal, however the upgraded AGM-88E has a much longer range and its release by the Americans was a burning desire of the Air Staff.
