The 6 Rafale aircraft (two of which are dual-command) landed in Croatia on Thursday, a major step forward in strengthening Croatia’s defense and security capabilities, the defense ministry announced, citing Croatian media.
The Rafale aircraft were flown by Croatian pilots who trained for their use for 15 months.
Upon entering Croatian airspace, Croatian Air Force pilots sent a message to all Croatian citizens: “We are about to enter Croatian airspace, which will be even safer from today. Croatian Rafale planes and Croatian pilots have arrived home,” the Ministry of Defense announced.
The Croatian army will thus have a modernized combat aviation fleet, which represents the largest investment of the Government and the Ministry of Defense in the defense forces, the Croatian defense minister also said.
The acceptance ceremony for the first batch of multi-role combat aircraft took place at the air base in Pleso, which was equipped with simulators, a maintenance hangar, engine maintenance buildings and a warehouse. The value of the entire 20-hectare complex is estimated at approximately 37 million euros.
Croatia should have 8 aircraft by the end of this year, and the remaining 4 aircraft are expected by the end of the first quarter of 2025.
The 12 multi-role Rafale fighter jets will be used operationally by the 191st Fighter Squadron of the 91st Wing of the Croatian Air Force, the statement from the Ministry of Defense also states.
The decision on the purchase of Rafale fighter jets was taken by the Government on May 28, 2021, when it instructed the Ministry of Defense to carry out all necessary actions in connection with the conclusion of the contract between Croatia and France.
A total of 1.13 billion euros have been secured from the state budget for the purchase of Rafale in the period 2021-2026.
Training of multi-role fighter pilots from allied and partner countries should also take place in Croatia at the Government-backed Fighter Pilot Training Center (FPTC), which is expected to be operational from 2026 .
According to the ministry’s statement, the Rafale jets entered the airspace of the Republic of Croatia at exactly noon.
“After entering Croatia, the pilots responded with a greeting message and continued their flight over Cres to the Lika area, where they formed a formation of 2×3 aircraft and continued their flight to Zagreb Airport:
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