By Nicoleta Petanidou

Greece proceeds with the upgrade and modernisation of seven Canadair CL-415 firefighting aircraft.

During a ceremony held at the Greek Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, in the presence of the Minister for Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, Giannis Kefalogiannis, Greece and Canada formally sealed the agreement for the implementation of the contract on Tuesday, March 10.

The initiative, promoted by the ministry's political leadership, aims to upgrade the aircraft's electronic and navigation systems through the installation of modern avionics equipment based on "glass cockpit."

Within this framework, the contract seeks to address the obsolescence of existing systems while ensuring compliance with the safety standards of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

At the same time, it is expected to enhance the aircraft's reliability, flight safety and operational effectiveness in aerial firefighting missions.

Canadair aircraft are among the most recognizable and essential tools in the Greek effort to combat forest fires.

Overall operational upgrade of the platform

As Giannis Kefalogiannis stated, the decision to modernize seven CL-415 aircraft does not only concern a technical intervention, but the overall operational upgrade of the platform and the assurance that a modern fleet for the country will continue to operate with modern safety and reliability standards for many years to come.

"This is not just an investment in the maintenance of an aircraft, but also in the continued operational capability of a fleet that has proven its value in practice."

At the same time, he pointed out that technology and safety regulations are changing as natural hazards evolve, with the climate crisis making firefighting periods longer and more demanding. In this environment, as he said, adapting the means is a responsible choice.

He stressed that with the upgrade, "aircraft acquire modern operational capabilities, fleet availability is enhanced and flight safety is improved, while new digital systems in the cockpit offer crews a better picture of the situation and support faster and more accurate decision-making."

Schedule and cost

Greece will start receiving the new generation aircraft of type 515, making it the country with the largest fleet of this type in the world (14 in total).

Regarding the cost of the contract, the Ministry of Civil Protection noted that the agreement has a budget of 43 million euros and is financed through an EIB loan under the "AIGIS" Civil Protection program.

As for the schedule, he stated that "the implementation will begin with the first aircraft being received in 2027 and will be completed in 2030", underlining that this is another step in the modernization of Civil Protection assets, "so that when the country is tested, the assets are in place, ready, reliable and effective."