Amazing Hellenic Air Force "HAF".
The Hellenic Air Force (HAF; Greek: Πολεμική Αεροπορία, romanized: Polemikí Aeroporía, lit. 'Military Aviation', sometimes abbreviated as ΠΑ) is the air force of Greece (Hellenic being the endonym for Greek in the Greek language). It is considered to be one of the largest air forces in NATO, and is globally placed 18th out of 139 countries. Under the Kingdom of Greece from 1935 to 1973, it was previously known as the Royal Hellenic Air Force (RHAF) (Ἑλληνικὴ Βασιλικὴ Ἀεροπορία).
In 1911, the Greek Government appointed French specialists to form the Hellenic Aviation Service. Six Greek officers were sent to France for training, while the first four Farman type aircraft were ordered. All six graduated from the Farman school in Étampes near Paris, but only four subsequently served in aviation. The first Greek civilian aviator that was given military rank was Emmanuel Argyropoulos, who flew in a Nieuport IV.G. 'Alkyon' aircraft, on 8 February 1912. The first military flight was made on 13 May 1912, by Lieutenant Dimitrios Kamberos. In June, Kamberos flew with the 'Daedalus', a Farman Aviation Works aircraft that had been converted into a seaplane, setting a new average speed world record at 110 kilometres per hour (68 miles per hour). In September of the same year, the Greek Army fielded its first squadron, the 'Aviators Company' (Greek: Λόχος Αεροπόρων).
During the Italian invasion of Greece (1940)
Greek aviators at the San Stefano airfield, after the Mudros armistice. in the Second World War, although being severely outnumbered and counting only 79 aircraft against 380 fighters and bombers of the Italian Regia Aeronautica, RHAF managed to successfully resist the assault. On 30 October, two days after the start of the war, there was the first air battle. Some Henschel Hs126s of 3/2 Flight of 3 Observation Mira took off to locate Italian Army columns. But they were intercepted and attacked by Fiat CR.42 Falcos of 393a Squadriglia. A first Henschel was hit and crashed, killing its observer, Pilot Officer Evanghelos Giannaris, the first Greek aviator to die in the war. A second Hs126 was downed over Mount Smolikas, killing Pilot Officer Lazaros Papamichail and Sergeant Constantine Yemenetzis.
 Hellenic Air Force badge |
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| Founded | 1912; 112 years ago |
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| Country |
 Greece
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| Branch | Air force |
| Role | Aerial warfare |
| Size | Approx. 42,500 personnel
635 aircraft 8 types of air defence systems |
| Part of | Hellenic Armed Forces |
| Nickname(s) | HAF |
| Patron | Archangels Michael and Gabriel |
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| Colours | |
| Anniversaries | 8 November |
| Engagements | |
| Website | www |
| Commanders | |
| Chief of Air Force General Staff | Air Marshal Dimosthenis Grigoriadis |
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| Insignia | |
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| Aviator badge |  |
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Current aircraft Hellenic Air Force "HAF"
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| Aircraft | Origin | Type | Variant | In service | Notes | |
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| Combat Aircraft | ||||||
| Dassault Rafale | France | multirole | DG/EG | 18 | 6 on order | |
| Mirage 2000 | France | multirole | 5 Mark II | 24 | ||
| F-4 Phantom II | United States | fighter-bomber | F-4E | 33 | ||
| F-16 Fighting Falcon | United States | multirole | F-16C/D | 151 | 39 D variants provide conversion training | |
| Maritime Patrol | ||||||
| Lockheed P-3 Orion | United States | patrol / ASW | 1 | |||
| AWACS | ||||||
| Embraer E-99 | Brazil | AEW&C | 4 | |||
| Aerial Firefighting | ||||||
| PZL-Mielec M-18 | Poland | water bomber | M-18B | 22 | ||
| Bombardier CL-415 | Canada | water bomber | 7 | One aircraft is dedicated for SAR. Seven new DHC-515 aircraft on order to replace the CL-215. | ||
| Bombardier CL-215 | Canada | tanker | 11 | |||
| Transport | ||||||
| Alenia C-27J | Italy | transport | 8 | |||
| Gulfstream V | United States | VIP transport | 1 | |||
| Super King Air | United States | air ambulance | 350 | 2 | flown for the Ministry of Health | |
| Lockheed C-130 | United States | tactical airlift | C-130B/H | 4 | ||
| Embraer EMB-135 | Brazil | VIP transport | 135LR/BJ | 1 / 1 | ||
| Dassault Falcon 7X | France | VIP transport | 1 | |||
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Previous notable aircraft operated were the Supermarine Spitfire, F-86 Sabres, Douglas C-47 Skytrain, Grumman HU-16 Albatross, Sikorsky H-19, Bell 47, Dassault Mirage F1, Lockheed T-33, Republic F-84F, Convair F-102 Delta Dagger, Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, Northrop F-5, A-7 Corsair II, and the RF-4E[
British European Airways Corporation, was a British airline from 1946 until 1974.
The Vickers VC10 is a mid-sized, narrow-body long-range British jet airliner.
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| United States Navy A-7E from VA-146 | |
| Role | Attack aircraft |
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| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Ling-Temco-Vought |
| First flight | 26 September 1965 |
| Introduction | 1 February 1967 |
| Retired | 1991 (USN, USAF), 1993 (ANG) 1999 (Portuguese Air Force) 2014 (Hellenic Air Force) |
| Status | Retired |
| Primary users | United States Navy (historical) United States Air Force (historical) Portuguese Air Force (historical) Hellenic Air Force (historical) |
| Produced | 1965–1984 |
| Number built | 1,545 |
| Developed from | Vought F-8 Crusader |
| Variants | LTV A-7P Corsair II Vought YA-7F |
Armament