The air forces of Israel and Greece rehearsed air combat maneuvering this week in a joint exercise dubbed Re'amim, or Thunderclaps, at Uvda Air Base in the Negev.
This is the countries' third such joint exercise in recent years, and is part of the extensive security cooperation between them, reports the IDF Website.
Besides maneuvering in simulated combat between jets, the pilots rehearsed facing other aerial challenges that both air forces face.
"In the course of the last few days, we were working on strengthing cooperation between the militaries, with an emphasis on scenarios and missions that both air forces share,” explained Major D., Deputy Commander of the Knights of the Orange Tail squadron. “We came to teach and learn from an air force that is a good, strong partner of the Israeli Air Force.”
D. explained that the exercise has an “intimate” aspect in that it enables direct professional dialogue between the two air forces – something that is not as easy in the exercises involving a larger number of air forces.
Last year, the IAF hosted the Greek Air Force in the Blue Flag exercise, Israel's largest-ever aerial exercise, with the participation of the air forces of Italy and the US.
The exercise was held a week before Hanukkah, the holiday that marks a Jewish victory over Seleucid-Greek armies, over 2,000 years ago.