List of aviation accidents and incidents in Greece

This is a list of aviation accidents and incidents that have occurred in Greece. ^[1]

Civilian

1940s

• October 26, 1947: Douglas DC-4 on way from Istanbul to Athens crashes in Hymettus. 44 people died.
• December 21, 1948: Douglas C-47 of Czech Airlines crashes in Kalamata with a death toll of 24.
• June 6, 1949: Douglas C-47 of the now-defunct National Greek Airlines crashes in Athens. 22 people die.

1950s

• October 29, 1959: DC3 of Olympic Airways crashes near Tanagra. 18 people are killed.

1960s

• October 12, 1967: De Havilland DH.106 Comet of British European Airways crashes off Rhodes, killing 66 people on board.
• December 8, 1969: Douglas DC-6 of Olympic Airways from Chania to Athens crashes in Keratea. 90 people are killed.

1970s

• July 19, 1972: BAC One-Eleven 501EX of British Caledonian overruns the runway of Kerkyra (Corfu) Airport during takeoff and stops in a lagoon. One elderly passenger dies subsequently from a heart attack. ^[2]
• October 21, 1972: NAMC YS-11 of Olympic Airways crashes in Athens. 37 people are killed.
• September 8, 1974: TWA Flight 841 crashes into the Ionian Sea. All 79 passengers and 9 crew members were killed.
• November 23, 1976: NAMC YS-11 of Olympic Airways from Athens to Kozani crashes under fog into a mountain near Sarantaporo. Fatalities: 50. ^[3]
• October 7, 1979: A Douglas DC-8 Swissair Flight 316 lands at Athens Ellinikon International Airport, overshoots the runway, and kills fourteen passengers.

1980s

• April 2, 1986: TWA Flight 840 is bombed en route to Athens, ejecting 4 on board. The plane landed safely.
• August 3, 1989: Short 330 of Olympic Airways from Thessaloniki to Samos crashes in the Kerketeus range of mountains. All 34 people on board are killed.

1990s

• March 24, 1992: A Boeing 707-321C operated by Golden Star Air Cargo crashes into Mount Hymettus on approach to Athens-Ellinikon International Airport. All 7 people on board are killed.
• December 17, 1997: A Yakovlev Yak-42 operating Aerosvit Airlines flight 241 crashes into the Pierian mountains in Central Macedonia. 70 people are killed. ^[4]

2000s

• August 14, 2005: Helios Airways Flight 522 crashes in Grammatiko, killing all 121 people on board. This is the deadliest aviation accident in the history of Greece. ^{[5] [6]}
• October 3, 2006: Turkish Airlines Flight 1476 is hijacked in Greek airspace.

2020s

• July 16, 2022: Meridian Flight 3032, an Antonov An-12BK carrying munitions from Serbia to Bangladesh, crashes near Kavala, killing all eight people on board. ^[7]

Military

1970s

• January 12, 1970: Douglas C-47 of the Hellenic Air Force crashes in Vilia, resulting in the death of 23 people.
• September 6, 1973: Two Mirage V's of the Belgian Air Force crash into the Lefka Ori mountains within one minute of each other, killing their pilots.
• February 9, 1975: Transall C-160 of the Luftwaffe crashes in Chania, killing 40 people.

1990s

• February 5, 1991: The worst accident in the history of the Hellenic Air Force. Lockheed C-130H Hercules 748 crashes into Mount Othrys, killing 63.
• June 18, 1992: Greek Mirage F-1 crashes near Agios Efstratios while intercepting Turkish F-16s, killing pilot Lieutenant Nikolaos Sialmas.
• August 31, 1995: Antonov AN-26 of Force Aérienne du Mali crashes 2 nmi north of Makedonia International Airport, Thessaloniki. 6 people die.
• December 20, 1997: Lockheed Hercules C-130 of the Hellenic Air Force crashes into Pastra Mountain near Tanagra, killing 5.

2000s

• September 11, 2004: Helicopter carrying Patriarch Peter VII of Alexandria and 16 others crashes into the Aegean Sea; none survived.
• May 23, 2006: A Greek and a Turkish F-16 collide in midair near Karpathos, killing Greek Captain Kostas Iliakis.
• December 5, 2007: Greek Bell UH-1 Iroquois crashes into Evia during a training mission. 4 crew members are killed.

2010s

• February 26, 2010: Hellenic Army Agusta Bell AB212 crashes in Lamia during a training mission, killing 2 crew members.
• January 26, 2015: Greek F-16 crashes during a NATO training exercise at Los Llanos Air Base in Albacete, Spain, killing 11 (2 Greek pilots, 9 French military personnel). 21 others were injured. ^[8]
• August 30, 2018: Greek Canadair CL-215 crashes in Zakynthos during firefighting efforts; crew survives.

2020s

• January 30, 2023: Lockheed C-130J Super Hercules of the US Air Force crashes during a training mission in northern Greece. No fatalities were reported.

See also

• List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft

References

1. "Worst accident in Greece : 121". Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives. Archived from the original on 12 December 2007.
2. "Accident investigation report on 19 July 1972". Archived from the original on 12 February 2023.
3. "The air tragedy of Kozani". in.gr (in Greek). 23 November 2020. Archived from the original on 16 July 2023.
4. "Accident investigation report 17 December 1997". Archived from the original on 6 April 2022.
5. "Cypriot jet crashes in Greece; 121 dead". CNN. 14 August 2005. Archived from the original on 13 September 2005.
6. "'No survivors' in Greek air crash". BBC Online. 14 August 2005. Archived from the original on 9 July 2023.
7. "Eight crew members killed in Ukraine cargo plane crash in northern Greece". Reuters. 17 July 2022. Archived from the original on 17 July 2022.
8. "Albacete fighter jet crash leaves 10 dead and 13 injured as plane bursts into flames on take off". Mirror. 26 January 2015. Archived from the original on 26 September 2022.