Greece approves purchase of air defence system, upgrade of F-16 jets

ATHENS, March 16 - A Greek parliamentary committee approved on Monday the purchase of a three-billion euro multi-layer air and drone defence system and the upgrade of 38 F-16 fighter jets, with the total cost estimated at about 4 billion euros ($4.6 billion), two sources told Reuters.

Greece is already in talks with Israel to provide a big part of the missile systems for the dome, called "Achilles Shield" with an estimated cost of about 3 billion euros.

"The parliament committee approved the project and also the upgrade of the F-16s," said a senior source with direct knowledge of the issue. The session took place behind closed doors.

Greece plans to upgrade an additional 38 F-16 Block 50 jets, dating back to the 1990s, to the modern "Viper" version at an estimated cost of about one billion euros, the source added.

A second person confirmed the information.

Greece has a fleet of about 150 F-16s and has already upgraded about 40 of them.

The Greek government has said that it plans to spend in total about 28 billion euros ($32 billion) by 2036 to modernize its armed forces as it emerges from a 2009-2018 debt crisis and tries to keep pace with its historic rival Turkey.

The new purchase will also need to be approved by the country's top decision-making body on foreign affairs and defense matters, KYSEA.

The committee on Monday also gave the green light for the upgrade of four old MEKO 200 frigates and a maintenance agreement for C29J military transport aircraft.

($1 = 0.8718 euros)