Turkish F-16 Jets Fly Over Greek Islands

A pair of Turkish F-16 fighter jets entered Athens’ Flight Information Region (FIR) without submitting a flight plan and flew over the inhabited islands of Leipsoi and Farmakonisi on Monday.

Specifically, the pair flew over Farmakonisi at 4:16 p.m. at an altitude of 28,000 feet, and over the island of Leipsoi two minutes later at 4:18 p.m. at a constant altitude.

Record number of Turkish jet overflights in 2020

The number of Turkish planes overflights over Greece in 2020 outnumber those that have been made in the past decade.

The number of overflights of Turkish fighter jets over Greek islands since the beginning of the year has reached 401, according to Hellenic National Defense General Staff (GEETHA) figures. A record number that demonstrates Ankara’s willingness to take the situation to the very limit — until Greece reacts with aggression.

The main news from Greece on Monday that you may have missed as the world focuses on the Russian invasion of Ukraine

Greece’s National Meteorological Service EMY updated on Monday its weather warning on the severe weather front called “Bianca,” that will hit Greece on Tuesday and is forecast to last for two days.

The main features of the front will be locally heavy rainfalls and thunderstorms in central and southern Greece and locally heavy snowfall in the central and northern parts of the mainland.

Greece concerned over tourist season

Greece’s tourism officials have expressed anxiety over the consequences of the Ukraine crisis on that crucial sector. “It is too early to make any safe statements today over the consequences on tourism. It will all be assessed in the coming weeks,” said the president of the Greek Tourism Confederation (SETE), Yiannis Retsos, in a social media post.

The effects of this new crisis are not only related to the expected course of tourism arrivals from Russia but mainly to the new, global wave of price hikes and the soaring energy costs hitting Europe and America – the two markets that dominate Greek tourism.

Covid-19 cases and deaths in Greece

The National Public Health Organization today announced 70 COVID-19 deaths and 16,274 newly confirmed infections (36 detected at points of entry into the country) in the last 24 hours.

With the newly recorded deaths, 25,860 people have died of COVID-19 in Greece, 95 percent with an underlying health condition and/or age 70 or over.

Ferry disaster still in the news

Greek authorities have resumed their search for three people who are still missing after a fire onboard the Euroferry Olympia. At least eight people are confirmed to have died after the blaze broke out on February 18 onboard the Italian-flagged ship.

A total of 281 people on board the ship were rescued in the hours after the fire.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Monday said it coordinated the rescue of a Greek national who fell off a merchant vessel in the Arabian sea off the Lakshadweep.

The ICG’s MRCC “successfully coordinated recovery of man overboard (MOB)” named Dyonysis Papadopoulos, a Greek national, employed as second officer on board the merchant vessel Galini, it noted.