Aviation Odyssey

Richard Vandervord unearths some not-so-ancient treasures within Greece's blossoming Hellenic Air Force Museum

Greece received more than 100 Thunderstreaks from 1957. This example, restored to represent 26595, is actually F-84F 26361, which served from 1958 to 1978.
ALL RICHARD VANDERVORD

About half-an-hour’s drive north of Athens lies Dekelia Air Base, in Tatoi – home to the Hellenic Air Force Academy’s Cessna T-41 and Tecnam P2002 elementary trainers. To whet the appetite of aviation enthusiasts even more, though, it is also the site of the Hellenic Air Force Museum. Established in 1992, it is one of the world’s younger national aircraft collections, but the Greek service’s tendency to delay scrapping obsolete flying machines has ensured an impressive range of exhibits, particularly representing the post-war years, when large numbers of US jets were obtained by Greece under the Military Assistance Program.

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