Turkish aircraft return, violating Greek air space
A total of nine Turkish aircraft violated Greek air space on Friday, fueling concerns following a spike in aggressive rhetoric by Turkish politicians in recent days.
Two F-16s, three CN-235s and four helicopters violated Greek national air space in the northeastern, central and southeastern Aegean, according to Greek defense sources, who said there was one mock dogfight between Greek and Turkish aircraft.
In total, Greek defense sources recorded 11 violations of the Athens Flight Information Region.
The Turkish aircraft were chased away by Greek jets in line with international rules of engagement.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday reacted angrily to comments by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras describing Turkey as “an aggressive neighbor.”
On Wednesday Turkey’s Prime Minister Binali Yildirim disputed Greece’s sovereignty over the uninhabited Imia islets, known in Turkish as Kardak, in the eastern Aegean.
