The arrival of the Patroller UAV systems at the end of September will mark the completion of the first phase of Greece’s drone defence build-up, with Athens now developing three levels of protection against the hybrid threats of the twenty-first century. Following the creation of two Class 1 drone production lines at the army’s existing 306 EBT and 316 SPTCH facilities, planning by the Greek defence ministry (known in Athens as the “Pentagono,” after the pentagon-shaped complex that houses it) is proceeding on schedule to build a comprehensive drone and anti-drone defence network at every level.

The donation from the Athanasios K. Laskaridis Charitable Foundation, which gave the Hellenic Armed Forces two full advanced unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) systems of the V-BAT type (four vertical take-off and landing drones in total), immediately met the need for Class 2 drones, covering the second level and boosting deterrence capabilities while paving the way for the next major step.

Alongside the domestic production of Class 1 drones that underpins the Achilles Shield, and the integration of the V-BAT systems into the armed forces, the French Class 3 Patroller UAV system is, according to reports, set to be finalised at the end of September, when it will begin supporting the army with surveillance and intelligence-gathering.

According to military sources, the arrival of the two French Patroller UAV systems (four aircraft in total) creates “multi-layered coverage,” thanks to both its sensors and its long flight duration and range. If the unmanned aircraft, which cost €53m, are positioned proportionately across the country’s territory (for example, one in the north and one in the south), their capabilities for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions would work multiplicatively.

At the same time, however, they are expected to operate in combination with another Class 3 UAV system, the Heron, as well as alongside 10 more Class 2 V-BAT systems, which the Government Council for Foreign Affairs and Defence (KYSEA) recently approved, radically transforming the current surveillance picture for the Greek armed forces.

15 hours of endurance

It should be noted that training is under way for personnel and future operators in the Greek armed forces, given that this is a highly capable unmanned aerial system, with an 18-metre wingspan, a maximum take-off weight of 1,050 kg, a payload of up to 250 kg, an endurance of 15 hours, and a maximum altitude of 16,000 feet.

In practical terms, this means the Patroller can provide coverage of an extended area of intelligence responsibility with just two to three flights over a 24-hour period, given that its range reaches 180 to 200 km in line of sight (LOS) and up to 1,000 km via satellite link. According to manufacturer Safran, the Patroller unmanned system is intended for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions, both for operations abroad and for domestic security and maritime surveillance missions, thanks to three strategic advantages.

Specifically, the Patroller system has an advanced high-performance electro-optical sensor suite, and also offers a low cost per flight hour thanks to its simple petrol engine. It also holds official NATO airworthiness certification, a feature that carries particular value in areas with heavy air traffic, such as tourist and holiday zones or island regions.

Drones, like bullets

It is not only the Patroller’s multiple capabilities that matter, but also the quality of the intelligence it produces, particularly when configured with a COMINT payload to detect radio transmissions, or with synthetic aperture radar (SAR), which produces high-resolution ground imagery regardless of weather conditions or lighting.

At the same time, the defence ministry’s future plans include both the mass production of Class 1 unmanned aerial vehicles across Greek territory (to be made available to large formations) and the possibility of developing Greek-made armed drones, drawing, even in 2026, on the lessons of Nagorno-Karabakh from the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Opening the new unmanned vehicle production plant in Malakasa in early June, Greek Defence Minister Nikos Dendias spoke of a leap forward in industrial production of Class 1 drones by the Greek armed forces. “The Class 1 drone, the FPV, is not a fixed asset like an aircraft or a weapon. It is a consumable item, like a bullet,” Dendias said.

“Mass production on a large scale is therefore required,” Dendias added, noting that “the lesson from the last three wars, which perhaps we did not observe closely enough at the time, has now been understood,” referring to the first conflict in which such systems were used, in Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020, as well as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and, most recently, the war in Iran.

After Iran, the PULS

The defence ministry has also already drawn crucial conclusions from the ongoing confrontation between the United States and Iran, which demonstrated not only the dominant dynamic created by the mass use of drones and anti-drones, but also the need to combine these with traditional defensive tactics, such as air defence. Specifically, the importance of using anti-missile systems, as well as air defence systems, was underlined by the reality of both American operations in Tehran, given the perimeter the Iranians chose from which to launch missiles and drones in retaliation.

At the same time, the precision of Greek crews operating Patriot systems, together with Athens’s strong response in sending the frigate Kimon and a pair of F-16 fighter jets to Cyprus, marked the first time in years that the Greek armed forces demonstrated an operational advantage at both the strategic and tactical level, one that had not previously been apparent in its regional dimension.

Against this backdrop, according to military analysts, this prompted counter-moves, such as new trilateral cooperation formats that have recently emerged in the wider region. Some analysts include in this category the recent trilateral agreement between Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, which openly placed within Ankara’s sights a Muslim-majority country that directly benefits from the presence of Greek forces on its territory, as is the case with Saudi Arabia.

However, the effectiveness of these trilateral cooperation formats will be tested both in the field and over time, a factor that cannot be ignored given that Athens chose to act swiftly and with confidence rather than get bogged down in bureaucratic-style agreements. That said, discussion of Saudi Arabia’s involvement in upgrading the Greek Patriot system had begun some time ago, particularly once the accuracy of Greek crews had been tested repeatedly, always with a positive outcome and against different types of threats.

Despite Athens’s outward-looking strategy, the defence ministry had already recognised, even before the events in Iran, that beyond the defensive shielding of Greece and Cyprus, the extensive use of unmanned aircraft on the battlefield required a modern offensive weapon capable of striking drone and missile launch sites, both at strategic depth and in real time. The answer to this new requirement had already been built into the new arms procurement programme through the PULS ground-to-ground missile system.

According to reports, the Greek armed forces are expected to take delivery of the Israeli Precise and Universal Launching System (PULS) multiple rocket launcher within 18 months, as the current arms procurement programme provides for:

36 launcher vehicles

Six Fire Direction Centre (FDC) vehicles for the battery level

Two FDC vehicles for the battalion level

36 ammunition resupply vehicles

288 missiles with a 35 km range (Accular, 122 mm calibre)

320 missiles with a 150 km range (EXTRA, 306 mm calibre)

120 missiles with a 300 km range (Predator Hawk, 370 mm calibre)

108 loitering munitions (SkyStriker, 100+ km range)

324 training missiles

Thirty-five months

Following the timeline closely, and in parallel with structural changes across the armed forces, reports suggest the Achilles Shield will be fully realised within 35 months, delivering state-of-the-art defensive capabilities across five different levels simultaneously.

At sea, the Hellenic Navy’s procurement of four Schiebel Camcopter S-100 unmanned aerial vehicles is expected, according to reports, to be combined with the wider picture provided by drone coverage across all three classes, delivering an uninterrupted flow of intelligence to operational command centres.

This is especially significant given that the Camcopter S-100 is capable of landing on warships, which is why it is expected to be deployed on the Hellenic Navy’s FDI-class frigates, having already successfully completed its initial testing phase.

The quantitative targets

Setting ambitious targets at the foundation ceremony for the drone and anti-drone production plant in Malakasa, the defence minister described the following strategic goals:

Increasing annual production of Class I drones to at least 10,000, up from 4,000 today

Annual production of at least 300 Class II drones

Production of 300 ground vehicles and 300 anti-drone systems

This will also create research and development capabilities for surface vessels and submersible craft