By Bosphorus News Defense Desk
Greece and Portugal signed a €590 million agreement in Athens on November 2, 2026, for three Embraer KC-390 military transport and aerial refueling aircraft, with an option for three more. At the ceremony, Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias invoked the 1974 conflict in Cyprus and raised Athens's objections to the Türkiye–Libya maritime agreement.
The two countries' defense procurement chiefs signed the deal in the presence of Dendias and Portuguese Defense Minister Nuno Melo. Portugal will manage the purchase through its existing KC-390 program, including training and initial support. Embraer confirmed the three-aircraft order and the additional option, which has not been exercised.
First Delivery in 2027
Portugal's Defense Ministry expects the first aircraft in 2027, the second in 2029 and the third in 2031. The Greek aircraft will be based on the Portuguese Air Force configuration. Lisbon will supervise production, acceptance and delivery, with pilot and maintenance training at the KC-390 facilities at Beja Air Base.
A Portuguese government resolution published on October 22 sets out the financial breakdown. Of the €589,975,907.96 authorized, €532,894,587.68 covers the aircraft and initial logistics package. Another €57,081,320.28 is allocated to electronic warfare equipment, training, technical assistance and program management. Value-added tax is treated separately. The roughly €590 million price covers substantially more than the aircraft themselves.
Portugal says the sale will yield €33 million for the Portuguese state, or €11 million per aircraft, to be directed to its national defense industry.
Rafale and Mirage First, F-16 Compatibility Unresolved
Dendias said the KC-390s would give Greece its first jet-powered military transports and dedicated aerial tankers. He expects the refueling equipment to serve Greek Rafale and Mirage fighters initially and said F-16s could follow around November 2027, one year after the signing. He offered no details of the equipment or certification required to meet that timetable.
The KC-390 currently refuels aircraft through hoses and drogues mounted beneath its wings. Rafale and Mirage fighters can use that system. Standard F-16s instead receive fuel through a receptacle designed for a rigid flying boom. They cannot refuel from the KC-390's existing hose equipment.
Embraer and Northrop Grumman announced a program in February to develop a boom refueling system for the KC-390. On November 3, Greek defense outlet OnAlert reported, citing unnamed sources, that the Hellenic Air Force was considering a boom installation on one or more aircraft, possibly on later deliveries. Greece has announced neither an installation contract nor completed certification. Dendias's November 2027 target still depends on a technical solution and its certification.
The aircraft will also add jet-powered lift to Greece's transport fleet. Embraer rates the KC-390 to carry up to 26 tonnes, including troops, vehicles and equipment. It can also perform medical evacuation missions. Fleet availability will depend on deliveries, training and support arrangements.
Dendias Links Tanker Capability to Cyprus in 1974
In remarks published by Greece's Defense Ministry, Dendias argued that airborne tankers could have changed the course of events in Cyprus in 1974. He claimed that, had Greek fighters been able to refuel in flight, Türkiye's military intervention could not have taken place and the initial Turkish bridgehead could not have been maintained. The claim is a counterfactual assessment, not an established historical outcome.
Dendias said he had also discussed the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea with Melo, along with Greece's opposition to the 2019 Türkiye–Libya maritime delimitation memorandum. Libya's House of Representatives voted on October 20 to approve the memorandum, reversing its rejection in 2020. Türkiye welcomed the vote and rejects Greece's objections to the agreement. Athens and Lisbon announced no joint declaration on the maritime dispute.
The ministers also discussed Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty and the mutual-assistance clause in Article 42(7) of the Treaty on European Union, according to Dendias. Neither government announced a new bilateral defense commitment related to the Türkiye–Greece dispute.
Greece's KC-390 requirement had already appeared in the defense procurement program discussed in July. Embraer and Hellenic Aerospace Industry signed a memorandum in May to explore maintenance and overhaul work in Greece. The acquisition agreement does not specify a Greek industrial workshare.
The two countries also signed a separate air force cooperation agreement. Dendias and Melo discussed further work on unmanned maritime systems, drone-carrying vessels, counter-drone technologies and satellites, but announced no contracts for those projects. The KC-390 purchase covers the three aircraft and their associated equipment, training and support.
Sources: Hellenic Ministry of National Defence, Portuguese Ministry of National Defence, Portuguese Official Gazette, Portuguese Air Force, Embraer, Northrop Grumman, Libyan News Agency, Türkiye Ministry of Foreign Affairs, OnAlert, Bosphorus News review and reporting.