The Hellenic Air Force (HAF) is seeking a buyer for 18 Mirage 2000 EGM/BGM fighters that were decommissioned with the arrival of the Rafale, placing its hopes in a future deal with India.
According to Greek news site Kathimerini, these are aircraft that flew until 2022 in the 332nd Fighter Squadron (Falcons), which with the arrival of the Rafale fighters, were withdrawn from active service. The intention is to sell them before the wear and tear of prolonged immobilization leads them to an inevitable scrapping.
These 18 Mirage 2000 fighters are part of a larger purchase of 40 units and entered service with the HAF in 1988. Of these, only 10 airframes were selected for modernization to the M2000-5 standard (15 others were purchased directly from France), and the remaining units languished at Tanagra Air Base over the years, as the U.S.-origin F-16 became the backbone of the HAF’s air power.
The Mirage 2000s of the 332nd Squadron have been suffering for many years from availability problems, to the point that some aircraft have had to be «cannibalized» to keep a few units in flying condition. But in reality, most of these French fighters have been abandoned on the Tanagra runway since long before the arrival of the Dassault Rafale.
Indian Mirages endure
The Indian Air Force (IAF) maintains about 50 operational Mirage 2000 aircraft in three fighter squadrons. By the end of 2023, New Delhi announced its interest in acquiring used Mirage 2000s to replace aircraft lost in accidents and maintain the strength of its squadrons. Through locally developed upgrade programs, India intends to keep the French deltas in service until 2035, when they will begin to be replaced by the indigenously developed Tejas MkII fighter jet.
Athens hopes to further strengthen defense ties with India and is betting that the eventual sale of the decommissioned Mirage will reap more political than economic benefits, as the aircraft are already in poor condition and are estimated to fetch a few million euros at best.
Uncertain future for Greece’s Mirage 2000-5
The modernized Greek Mirage 2000-5 of the 331st «Theseus» Squadron are in better health than the aircraft intended for sale to India, particularly since the signature of the logistic support contract, which significantly increased their operational availability to almost 50%. However, the material is starting to show its age and its maintenance is becoming more and more expensive.
The idea of installing a Link-16 terminal to enable secure communication with the F-16V, Rafale and, in the future, the F-35 was abandoned due to high costs and uncertainty about the effectiveness of the project. This implies that the Mirage 2000-5 will gradually move to a secondary role within the HAF structure, being relegated mainly to interception tasks.
In this context, one of the options being considered by HAF commanders is to proceed with the sale of these 24 Mirage 2000-5s while they are still operational and have sufficient flight hours left, in order to finance the purchase of additional Rafale aircraft. India would possibly be a preferred destination for the Hellenic deltas (or Taiwan?), if it is finally decided to sell them.
