Three years in the Air Force ‘farretra’ the Rafale fighters

“Daddy brought it,” was the phrase of the little daughter of one of her flying men, who brought the first six French fighters to their new “roar”, in the 114 Battle Wing, marked the reception ceremony. Her father was absent for several months along with his other colleagues, as they were the first “core” of flying men trained in France and was initiated into the secrets of Rafale who came on 19 January 2022, in possession of our Air Force. CORVERSE Despite the severe cold, initially the sound and then the impressive appearance of the six Rafale “heated” those found at Tanagra Air Base. The six “wind dumps” with the HAF blue insignia on their wings landed one after another, taxied and stationed before the Prime Minister, the civil and military leadership of the Ministry of National Defence and a multitude of people. And only the Rafale image with aggressive design, the canards and both engines were enough to realize whoever was there that the Air Force is going through another era. Three years later, the designation “game changer”, which was attributed to French fighters before they even arrived in Greece, seems to be confirmed in the most emphatic way. Whether it is the neighbors’ reactions or especially those who have seen “on the field” the possibilities of two-engine fighters, “what can they do in the air” as their operators say. On 9 January he landed in Tanagra and was added to the arsenal of the 332 War Squadron “GERAKI”, the twenty-fourth Rafale, the last of the six fighters of the supplementary agreement, best closed the French fighters’ acquisition program. A program that went ahead in an exemplary way for Greek data in record time. CORVERSE In August 2020, the Air Force sent the official request for the purchase of 18 Rafale and only six months after, in January 2021, the relevant contract was signed. A year later HAF received the first six fighters, while the ‘fast track’ training of flying and technicians had already been preceded in France. In March 2022 the additional agreement was signed to acquire another 6 fighters. Already, at the same time as the arrival of the first Rafale the Air Force had received not only a stockpile of spare parts, but mainly fighter weapons, including the powerful air-to-air Meteor missiles. The weapon that turns Rafale into a scare and forces neighbors to seek “antidote”. Although they had initially been ironically reported in the acquisition of 4,5 generation fighters by HAF, over time they changed attitude. “Greece thinks it won something with the six used aircraft it bought. The weapons they acquired are too much for normal defense, but too little for Turkey,” the then defence minister Hulushi Akar rushed to say. However, the image that then reached the Turkish staff from the change of connections caused Ankara to worry. And now TUAF turns to Typhoon Eurofighter, pushing for simultaneous release of Meteor. The Rafales of our Air Force within these three years have already “written” more than 5,000 flight hours, while Squadron flying has spent multiple hours on the emulator trainees on the latest technology fighter. They have already left “sembling writing” with the ultimate air superiority they have achieved in all exercises and co-educations, both within and beyond borders. In record time, only 8 months since the first six Rafale taxied for the first time in Tanagra, the first operational assessment of IOC (Initial Operational Capacity) by the Tactical Air Force Headquarters with the Officers’ scale scoring the 332 Squadron “GERAKI” was completed. 15 months after their acquisition they relocated to the 117 Battle Wing in Andravida to take part in the largest air drill of HAF “ENIochOS 23”, along with allied aircraft. In September 2023 the final FOC operational evaluation (Final Operational Capability) of 332 War Squadron “GERAKI” was carried out by the Tactical Air Force Headquarters. The Squadron passed with excellent and this control involving its operational capability, support and interoperability across the range of operations that will be called upon to perform, resulting in its full integration into the Air Force’s operational planning. The last emphatic presence of Rafale last November at NATO TLP’s ‘Top Gun’ school in Albathete, Spain, was another proof that they are rightly described as ‘game changer’. As Onalert.gr revealed, its “olds” of 332 Squadron dominated both in “kills” and in survival rates against all. During these three years flying and technicians were intensively trained in every form of air combat and were initiated into all weapons that Rafale can carry, including the powerful latest-tech air-to-air Meteor missiles. They were familiar with the latest radar AESA RBE2 AA technology, the state-of-the-art SPECTRA self-protection system and the large weapon load they can carry. They also showed that they can dominate all air battles, in which they participated with both Viper and other HAF fighters. Rafale is undoubtedly the most powerful weapon deterrence system available to the Armed Forces, with the largest bet being their support in order to maintain the very high availability. Source: Kostas Sarikas / OnAlert.gr