The defense ministry gave a response to Ankara's claims that Greek fighter jets locked Turkish F-16s on NATO missions in the Eastern Mediterranean with their radars and attempted to block the Turkish ones.
Turkey maintains that it responded to this action and that the Greek fighter jets were removed from the area, while it states that the military attaché of Greece was summoned for an explanation to the Ministry of Defense.
Athens refutes the Turkish claims, clarifying that the Turkish F-16 fighters interfered with a NATO-agreed flight of US B-52 aircraft in the Athens FIR, violating the Air Traffic Rules by not filing a Flight Plan and were intercepted in accordance with international rules and according to established practice.
"From the Ministry of National Defense it is announced that following consultation and agreement between GEETHA and Air Command (AIRCOM) of NATO, at noon on August 22, 2022, a flight of American B-52 aircraft took place in the Athens FIR.
The B-52s entered from the southwestern border of the Athens FIR in order to exit from it west of the island of Megistis. The flight of the said aircraft took place as part of a demonstration of Inter-Allied cohesion and solidarity.
While the movement of the B-52s was not intended to be escorted by Fighter Aircraft, as has happened at other times in the past, five unidentified air trails moved east of Karpathos interfering with the B-52's route, violating Air Traffic Rules by not of filing a Flight Plan.
Four F-16 Fighter Aircraft of the PA immediately took off. from Crete, which identified the unknown tracks as armed Turkish F-16 Fighter Aircraft, intercepted in accordance with international rules and standard practice.
The competent authorities of NATO and the USA have been informed about the matter. Any other description of the facts involved is false."
A barrage of violations of the national airspace of the Aegean islands throughout the archipelago, was marked today by 23 Turkish fighters (of which 15 were carrying weapons), 2 Turkish naval cooperation aircraft (one ATR-72 and one CN-235) and two Turkish UAVs that entered the Athens FIR without filing a flight plan.
In 8 cases, the process of intercepting them by the Greek fighters evolved into a virtual dogfight.
As it became known from GEETHA, 20 violations of air traffic rules were recorded in the Athens FIR, which developed into 78 violations of the national airspace of the islands of the Archipelago: 42 violations by the 2 UAVs and 36 violations by the fighters (including 9 pairs and a trio of Turkish F-16s, as well as 1 pair of Turkish F-4s).
In all cases the Turkish aircraft were identified and intercepted by corresponding Greek fighters in accordance with international rules, according to standard tactics, while in 8 cases the interception process developed into an engagement.
It is recalled that two of the violations of the national airspace were made by the 2 pairs of Turkish F-16s that flew in the morning over Divunia and Kamilonisi Kasos at 27.000 feet.
It is noted that the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs went - as usual - on a protest march to Ankara for today's overflights of Turkish F-16s in the Aegean.
kathimerini.gr
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