The Cyprus Air Command (, ), also known as the Cyprus Air Force or Cypriot Air Force, is the armed air wing of the National Guard. This force is equipped with attack and anti-tank helicopters, surface-to-air missile systems and integrated radar systems.

History The history of Cypriot aviation began on 16 August 1960, after it won its independence from the United Kingdom, when an Air Wing was established on the island which. It was equipped with a small number of light aircraft and mainly performed search and rescue tasks (SAR), transport of the sick, control of fires and marine pollution as well as defense and police forces on the Cypriot coast and territory.

Until 1987, the aircraft of the Cypriot aviation still operated with civilian brands, as the usual military nature of the young air force had not yet developed. In the same year, 3 light helicopters Bell 206, 4 utility helicopters Aérospatiale Gazelle and 2 intermediate trainers Pilatus PC-9.

From this moment on, the Cypriot air force began to adopt for its aircraft a camouflage livery and nationality insignia with the national flag and the cockade that follows that of Greece. JP4 - Monthly of Aeronautica - n ° 8 year XXXIV - August 2005.

In July 2022, the Cypriot government announced that six Eurocopter EC145 helicopters would be procured from Airbus with an option for six more. These helicopters would cover the roles of reconnaissance and attack. They will be replacing the ageing Mil Mi-24 helicopters in service which are hard and costly to maintain. Turkish Cypriot authorities have called the helicopter purchase as a "provocation". The helicopters arrived in March 2025.

In March 2026, the air defenses of the Air Command were placed on alert following the strikes in Iran, working with Greek and assisting British forces in tracking aerial threats against the island including the Sovereign Base Areas where British forces failed to intercept shahed drones which impacted RAF Akrotiri.

Organisation The Cyprus Air Force consists of two aircraft squadrons. Note that the aircraft of the Cyprus Police operate under a separate command-structure during peacetime.

450th Attack Helicopter Squadron (450 M.E/P) 460th Search And Rescue Squadron (460 MED)

Air Force bases and stations Andreas Papandreou AFB, Paphos (ACTIVE) The primary airbase of the Cyprus Air Force, this base adjacent to the Paphos International Airport has a runway, taxiway, hardened aircraft-shelters, and integrated command, control and communication facilities.

Lakatamia AFB, Nicosia (HEADQUARTERS) The reserve airbase of the Cyprus Air Force lay just south of the Cypriot capital of Nicosia. The base rarely hosted fixed-wing aircraft, and simply served as a staging-post for helicopters operating in and out of the Nicosia area.

Troodos Stations (ACTIVE) The Troodos Mountains, the highest mountain range in Cyprus, hosts a number of radar and air-defense facilities. Their unit designations and deployment status are not made public.

Equipment

Aircraft Aircraft Origin Type Photo Variant In service NotesFixed-wing aircraftEmbraer ERJ-135VIP transportEMB-135BJ 1Donated by Greece to Cyprus in September 2022. The aircraft is used to transport the President of the Republic and other government officials.Air Tractor AT-802Firefighting2Transferred in February 2025 from the Department of Forests to the newly created fire-fighting unit of the National Guard. 3,1 ton water tank capacity. HelicoptersAirbus H145 Armed Reconnaissance HelicopterH145M5Another 1 on order with an option to buy an additional 6. First 4 delivered in 2025. Equipped with the HForce weapons system. Carrying 12,7mm machine gun and 12 rocket pot. It may also carry Spike ER missiles in the future. Aérospatiale Gazelle Utility/Anti-tank Gazelle SA 342L 4 Armed with 4 HOT Anti-tank Guided Missiles. AgustaWestland AW139 SAR/Utility AW1393Used primarily for Search and Rescue (SAR) in coordination with JRCC Larnaca.Bell 206 Utility/TransportLongRanger III2Three acquired from Belgian source in the 1980s. One lost in crash in 2003.Unmanned aerial vehicles Aerostar Surveillance/Recon 4 In service since 2019. +4 on order. IAI Searcher Surveillance/Recon 2 Swarmly Poseidon H-10Surveillance/Recon/VTOLUsed by the artillery Brigade for recon and target designation. Entered service 2025. Retired aircraft include the Mil Mi-35P.

Air defense

NameOriginTypePhotoIn serviceNotesSurface-to-air missilesBarak MXSurface-to-air missile system Possibly 2 batteries.In operation as of December 2024.AspideSurface-to-air missile system246 batteries/130 missiles. Utilized with the Skyguard system (Othellos) using Oerlikon GDF 35mm. 12 Skyguard radars.MistralMan-portable air defense system30 (300 missiles)18 Mistral MANPADS and 12 x2 Mistral ATLAS system mounted on Pinzgauer utility vehicles. More than 300 missiles. More missile on order as of June 2023.TOR M-1Surface-to-air missile system6Delivered by Greece in replacement for the S-300.~150 missiles.Buk M1-2Surface-to-air missile system8Total number of systems is unknown. Possibly 2 batteries with 4 systems each.9K32 Strela-2Man-portable air defense system100Operational numbers may be less.9S737M Ranzhir-MMobile command centerUnknownMobile Command Centre for the coordination of the TOR air defense network system Anti-aircraft artilleryGDF-005Anti-aircraft gun242x35mm anti-aircraft gun. Part of the Skyguard (Othellos) system along Aspide SAMs.Zastava M-55Anti-aircraft gun503x20mm anti-aircraft gun.

In 1998 two S-300 PMU1 systems were delivered, but then transferred to Hellenic Air Force that same year due to political considerations regarding the Cyprus Missile Crisis.

Aerial incidents between Cyprus and Turkey

Paphos Incident – 22 October 2000 On 22 October 2000, Tor-M1 air-defense batteries operated by the Cyprus National Guard at Papandreou Air Base tracked a pair of Turkish warplanes detected approaching the airbase by "locking on" to them. By Jean Christou, Cyprus Mail, 7 April 2002. The action of engaging the Turkish aircraft with radar forced the warplanes to retreat from the area, as Greek Cypriot and Greek forces conducted joint military maneuvers in the Paphos region. The incident prompted an angry outburst from the Turkish Cypriot leader, Rauf Denktaş, who was reported in the media to have condemned the radar lock-on as a provocation that could lead to war.

Paphos Incident – 5 April 2002 It was variously reported in the Cyprus media that combat radars of the Cyprus National Guard, based at Papandreou Air Base in Paphos, had tracked two Turkish F-16 warplanes at 11am on 5 April 2002, by "locking-on" to them. The two Turkish aircraft were reported to have incurred into the Nicosia Flight Information Region and then passed directly over the Greek Cypriot airbase at an altitude of 3500 feet. Upon realizing that they were being tracked, the two Turkish aircraft turned back towards Turkey, and then returned to their airbase.

Cyprus EEZ - 18 August 2022 On 18 August 2022, Cypriot and Greek radars spotted a Turkish Navy ATR 72 whilst flying over Block 6 of the exclusive economic zone of Cyprus. According to media sources, the plane did a low pass at 4,500 feet, however a Cypriot official claimed that the plane did no such thing and remained at 29,000.

Ranks

Commissioned officer ranks The rank insignia of commissioned officers.

Other ranks The rank insignia of non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel.

See also Armoured vehicles of the Cypriot National Guard Cypriot National Guard Cyprus Joint Rescue Coordination Center List of equipment of the Cypriot National Guard List of Cyprus military bases

References

Sources Cyprus National Guard Official website (Air Force section – in Greek) Cyprus Air Force Cyprus National Guard, Air Force Command , ACIG Journal , ACIG Journal Dirk Jan de Ridder "Cypriot Gunships", Ridder.aero Air Defence of Cyprus (in Greek)