Greece Expects U.S. Nod on F-35 Sale

Greece is expecting the official letter from the US State Department to approve the sale of F-35s to Greece, a day after President Biden urged Congress to quickly approve a $20 billion sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey.

Athens awaits Washington’s Letter of Acceptance (LOA) in response to the letter in which the Hellenic Air Force requested the start of the negotiation process for the F-35 acquisition.

Greece sent an official request to the US for the purchase of twenty Lockheed Martin-made F-35 fighter jets in 2022. The Greek government first signaled that it was interested in the F-35 program in January 2021. Due to various procedures, the procurement process is lengthy.

According to reports, the commitment that the sale of F-35s to Greece will proceed soon was given at the highest level in the meeting between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Antony Blinken in Crete, Greece. The package also includes free military aid.

Congress is then expected to approve the sale of the F-35 and negotiations will begin for the conclusion of the contract, which will include the schedules, the equipment, and the way of financing.

Biden Urges Congress to Quickly Approve F-16 Sale to Turkey

On Thursday it emerged that President Biden sent a letter to four senior members of Congress urging them to quickly approve a $20 billion sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, following the vote one day earlier by Turkey’s Parliament to allow Sweden to join NATO.

Turkey is awaiting the next move from the United States on Ankara’s request to buy F-16 fighter jets and modernization kits after ratifying Sweden’s NATO membership bid, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.

Speaking to reporters in Istanbul a day after signing off on parliament’s ratification of the Swedish move to join the Western military alliance, Erdogan said his foreign minister was working in close coordination with his US counterpart on the matter.

Greece’s defense and the capabilities of the F-35

Greece intends to buy a squadron of the Lockheed Martin-made F-35s, with a possible option for a second squadron.

It will become be the first country in the region after Israel to acquire the state-of-the-art fifth-generation fighters, which together with the Rafale and upgraded F-16s to the most advanced Block 72 configuration will create one of the most powerful air forces in the wider region.

According to Lockheed Martin’s official website for the F-35, the advanced fighter jet is “the most capable solution for the Hellenic Air Force.”

“The F-35 brings 5th Generation technologies, including low observable stealth with fighter aircraft performance, sensor fusion, net-enabled operations, and electronic warfare capabilities,” the website explains.

Lockheed Martin states that the F-35 presents Greece with the most cost-effective solution. They emphasize that the 5th Generation F-35 provides exceptional value, being the most capable aircraft with the lowest life-cycle cost, and offering extensive industrial participation opportunities.

Proponents for the procurement stress that Greece stands to gain from substantial investments made by current F-35 users, as well as savings resulting from economies of scale due to the increasing number of nations operating the F-35 in Europe and globally.