The 343rd Squadron (, ),

callsign In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign (also known as a call name or call letters—and historically as a call signal—or abbreviated as a call) is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assi ...

Star A star is a luminous spheroid of plasma (physics), plasma held together by Self-gravitation, self-gravity. The List of nearest stars and brown dwarfs, nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night sk ...

" (), is a squadron in service with the

Hellenic Air Force The Hellenic Air Force (HAF; , sometimes abbreviated as ΠΑ) is the air force of Greece (''Hellenic'' being the endonym for ''Greek'' in the Greek language). It is considered to be one of the largest air forces in NATO, and is globally placed 1 ...

, forming part of the 115th Combat Wing. It is based at

Souda Air Base Chania International Airport "Daskalogiannis" is an international airport located near Souda Bay on the Akrotiri peninsula of the Greek island of Crete, serving the city of Chania, away. It is a gateway to western Crete for an increasing numb ...

, and operates the F-16 Block 52+ aircraft.

History

The squadron was established in September 1955 as the 343rd Day Interceptor Squadron (343 Μοίρα Αναχαίτισης Ημέρας), at the

Elefsis Air Base Elefsina () or Eleusis ( ; ) is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in Athens metropolitan area. It belongs to West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is located in the Thriasio Plain, at the northernmost ...

, equipped with F-86E Sabres. In November 1955 the squadron moved to

Tanagra Air Base Tanagra Air Base is a large military air base situated in Tanagra, Greece. The air base is adjacent to Hellenic Aerospace Industry facilities. It is used as the home-base of the 114th Combat Wing (114 Πτέρυγα Μάχης, 114 ΠΜ) of the H ...

( 114th Combat Wing) until May 1958, when it moved to

Nea Anchialos Air Base Nea Anchialos National Airport () is an airport located near the town of Nea Anchialos in Greece. It serves the regional unit of Magnesia and is also known as ''Central Greece Airport''. Overview The airport is at an elevation of above mean ...

( 111th Combat Wing). In 1961, the squadron replaced its F-86Es with F-86D and

T-33 The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (or T-Bird) is an American subsonic jet trainer. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then d ...

, and was renamed as 343rd All-Weather Squadron (343 Μοίρα Παντός Καιρού). The squadron began delivery of the F-5A/B light fighters in 1966, assuming a central role in daylight interception role over Greek airspace, with a secondary

fighter-bomber A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, wh ...

role, and reverting to its previous designation as a Day Interceptor Squadron. The squadron moved to the 113th Combat Wing at

Mikra Air Base Mikra may refer to: *Mikra, Thessaloniki, a town in the Thermi municipality, Greece *''Mikra'', or Tanakh, the canonical collection of Jewish texts See also * *Micra (disambiguation) *Mikro (disambiguation) *Micro (disambiguation) *Tanak (disambig ...

in July 1974, until June 1985, when it returned to Nea Anchialos and 111th CW. It was disbanded in March 2001. The squadron was reformed in 2003 under its current designation, as part of 115th Combat Wing at

Souda Air base Chania International Airport "Daskalogiannis" is an international airport located near Souda Bay on the Akrotiri peninsula of the Greek island of Crete, serving the city of Chania, away. It is a gateway to western Crete for an increasing numb ...

, and equipped with F-16 Block 52+ aircraft.

References

{{Hellenic Air Force squadrons Military units and formations established in 1955 Squadrons of the Hellenic Air Force 1955 establishments in Greece