Apostolos Tomaras
An incident earlier this year, in which an Iranian Shahed-136 drone penetrated Cyprus’s air defenses and struck the British base at Akrotiri, exposed weaknesses in the country’s air defense system. Those gaps are expected to be addressed through the purchase of a Greek system designed to detect and neutralize drones.
According to well-informed sources from Kathimerini in Nicosia, the Ministry of Defense is moving quickly to acquire four “Centaur” systems. The Greek armed forces have already installed this system on the frigate Psara, which is currently deployed in Cyprus alongside the frigate Kimon. The purchase is part of the SAFE program and has already received approval from Brussels. More details were expected in the Sunday edition of Kathimerini.
F-16 patrols
Officials in Nicosia consider the assistance from Greece highly significant, since it has helped address some of the weaknesses in Cyprus’s air defense. In addition to an identification and interception incident that was handled out of the public spotlight, Greek F-16 Viper jets conduct near-nightly reconnaissance patrols over Cyprus to monitor for potential threats.
These patrols are carried out on a rotating basis with British fighter aircraft stationed at the Akrotiri base.
The Centaur system
The anti-drone system being acquired by the National Guard was developed by the Hellenic Aerospace Industry. It has already been successfully tested during operations by the Hellenic Navy in the Red Sea against Houthi forces.
The system detects unmanned aerial vehicles electronically and creates a jamming shield that neutralizes the threat while remaining undetectable to enemy forces.
