Kostas Kavvathas, a multifaceted man who created and established the specialized press in Greece—particularly in the field of automobiles, but not only—has died at the age of 86.

He was born in Athens in 1939, during the difficult years of the occupation and civil war, as he liked to say. He graduated from the 2nd Boys’ High School. From a very young age, he showed interest in aviation activities and in 1957 he trained at the Tripoli Air Sports Center, where he obtained a glider pilot license.

The following year (1958), he went to the United Kingdom, where he studied at the School of Mechanical Engineering of the London Northern Polytechnic until 1960. Although he did not complete his studies, he became closely involved with the automotive world—also at a competitive level—since the UK was a major hub of the car scene at the time.

His journalistic career began in 1959 with the magazine Tachytis, was interrupted by his military service, and resumed in 1963 at the newspaper Mesimvrini. For three years, he maintained the automobile column there and later worked for the weekly current affairs magazine Alpha.

His first attempt to publish his own magazine dates from around this time, together with Giannis Bardopoulos: Trochoi & Dromoi (“Wheels & Roads”), although it was discontinued just before going to print. After a short stint at Neo Aftokinito (“New Car”), he joined the editorial team of Auto Express, which launched in the summer of 1967. He soon became its editor-in-chief, succeeding Kyriakos Korovilas.

Kostas Kavvathas also worked in television (EIRT), where one of his most significant moments was co-commentating live with Iason Moschovitis on the Apollo 11 mission and moon landing.

He returned to TV with Mega Channel and the first Greek television program dedicated to cars, titled Trochoi & Dromoi.

In October 1970, together with his wife Sofia, he founded Technikes Ekdoseis (Technical Publications) and the magazine 4Trophoi (“4Wheels”). Over time, many other well-known titles were added, including Ptisi & Diastima (“Flight & Space”), Ichos & Hi-Fi (“Sound & Hi-Fi”), RAM, 2 Trochoi (“2 Wheels”), as well as the radio station En Lefko.

At the same time, he contributed articles to the weekly magazine Epikaira, collaborated with Kathimerini in 1990, and briefly wrote for To Vima from 1991 to 1998, and Proto Thema from its first issue until 2012.

Among his achievements are books such as Porsche, the Man and the Cars by Richard von Frankenberg, which he translated into Greek in 1972 along with two other distinguished colleagues, Driving: The Real Driver’s Book, and the recently published Asimospito (“Silver House”).

Kavvathas also participated in Greek motorsport races of the time. His record includes five entries in the Acropolis Rally, as well as participation in skill trials, hill climbs, and circuits, driving a Peugeot 204 and NSU 1200 TT under the pseudonym “Peleas.”

He also piloted various types of aircraft and had flown more than 23 fighter jets.

Kostas Kavvathas was a member of the European “Car of the Year” (COTY) committee from 1984 to 2004, and served as a city councilor of the Municipality of Athens with Antonis Tritsis’ political group.

He also initiated the 1st European Conference on Clean Cars and the 1st Eco-Rally at the Athens University Campus, in collaboration with the National Technical University of Athens (1997), as well as the Phaethon 2004 initiative.

In 1994, he created Greece’s second private internet node, Techlink, and in 2000 the country’s first Road Safety Center, Safetrack, which operated at the Megara racetrack.