Greece Advances Home-Grown Defense Industry with Anti-Drone System

ATHENS, Aug 5 (Reuters) – Greece is pushing to make its home defence industry, focusing connected a caller anti-drone strategy called Centauros, produced by the state-run Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI). During its archetypal trial with an EU patrol successful the Red Sea past year, Centauros detected and downed 2 Houthi drones attacking merchant vessels, portion jamming 2 others, forcing their retreat.

The system, susceptible of detecting drones from 150 km and firing from 25 km, is acceptable to beryllium integrated crossed Greece’s naval fleet. It’s touted arsenic Europe’s lone battle-proven anti-drone system.

As portion of a 30-billion-euro subject modernization programme done 2036, Greece plans to put 800 cardinal euros ($925 million) successful defence innovation, including wide accumulation of 3 anti-drone systems—Centauros, Iperion, and Telemachus—starting successful 2026. These systems purpose to support troops and ships, peculiarly adjacent the Turkish border, amid Greece’s historical rivalry with its NATO state and prolific drone exporter, Turkey. Greece spends astir 3.5% of its GDP connected defence owed to this tension.

The programme besides includes processing combat drones similar Kerveros, a vertical take-off UAV with a 30 kg payload, produced by Greek institution Altus successful collaboration with France’s MBDA. HAI is besides moving connected Archytas, a ample UAV named aft an past Greek inventor, aiming to beryllium a top-tier model. The Hellenic Centre for Defence Innovation, overseen by the Defence Ministry, targets exporting arsenic overmuch arsenic Greece spends connected defence annually, boosting its home industry, which presently accounts for lone a fraction of defence spending.