Greek Navy Sinks Retired Frigate In Joint Drill With Israel (Vid)

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In an exercise unprecedented for the Hellenic Navy, the decommissioned frigate Bouboulina (F-463) was used as a target ship for guided missile test firings and was then sunk by a submarine-launched torpedo.

The operation took place on Wednesday, October 21, in the northern Cretan Sea, as part of the acceptance firings of the Navy’s new SPIKE NLOS and SPIKE ER weapon systems. Units from both the Greek and Israeli navies took part.

The firings were attended by:

• the Chief of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff,
• General Dimitrios Choupis
• the Commander of the Israeli Navy
• Vice Admiral Eyal Harel
• the Chief of the Hellenic Navy General Staff
• Vice Admiral Dimitrios-Eleftherios Kataras and
• Fleet Commander Vice Admiral Christos Sasiakos.

Missiles fired from gunboat and special operations craft

The missiles were launched from a Machitis-class gunboat and a Mark V unconventional warfare craft. According to the Hellenic Navy General Staff, the firings were completely successful and confirmed the effectiveness and operational value of the new weapon system. Israeli Navy units also fired guided missiles.

The exercise involved ships from the Navy’s Frigate, Submarine, Fast Patrol Craft, Patrol Vessel and Underwater Demolition commands, Naval Aviation helicopters, Hellenic Air Force assets and two Israeli Navy guided missile vessels. The Navy said cooperation with the Israeli ships helped improve interoperability between the two forces.

After being struck by the missiles, Bouboulina was sunk with an SUT torpedo fired from a submarine. The Hellenic Navy released a video on X showing the exercise, including footage recorded by a SPIKE missile’s own camera as it hit the frigate, the torpedo exploding beneath the hull and the ship going down.

Exercise revealed by Israel

The drill was not announced while it was underway. It was made public on Friday by the Israeli armed forces, which also released video and photos. According to the Israeli statement, missile boats from the Israeli Navy’s 3rd Flotilla took part alongside Greek units.

The Israeli military said crews trained in detecting and neutralizing threats at sea, sailing as a combined naval force and striking an enemy ship with guided missiles. The training focused on operational coordination and joint defensive and offensive capabilities, as well as building a shared maritime picture so the ships could assess threats and operate as a single force.

Harel called the exercise a “significant milestone” for operational cooperation between Greece and Israel. He said Israel’s strategic partnership with Greece acts as a major force multiplier, strengthening the two countries’ ability to act together to keep the Mediterranean secure and maintain freedom of navigation.

Bilateral talks aboard the frigate Psara

On the sidelines of the firings, Kataras and Harel held a bilateral meeting aboard the frigate Psara. They discussed issues of mutual interest, with an emphasis on current maritime security challenges, freedom of navigation and developments in the wider Eastern Mediterranean.

The two sides focused on further strengthening cooperation between their navies to promote regional stability and security, and confirmed their intention to expand cooperation in naval operations, innovation and new technologies.