Turkish drone intercepted after violating Greek airspace

According to an announcement by the Hellenic National Defence General Staff (GETHA), a Turkish unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) entered the Athens Flight Information Region without filing a flight plan, violated the national airspace of Greece.

The incident occurred on September 24 at 09:10 and 09:24 over Kandeliussa at 15,000 feet.

The Turkish drone was identified and intercepted according to international rules.

Elsewhere, Turkish defense firm Baykar has delivered 20 of its armed drones to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) this month and could sell more, two sources said Wednesday.

This comes as a diplomatic détente between the former regional rivals expands into military contracts.

International demand for Bayraktar's soared after their impact in conflicts in Syria, Ukraine, Libya and Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).

Now the United Arab Emirates and its ally Saudi Arabia are hoping to benefit from their rapprochement with Turkey to counter a growing security challenge from Iran and its proxy forces, Turkish military sources say.

Both Gulf Arab oil states have faced drone attacks on cities and oil facilities that they blamed on Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen.

A Turkish source with knowledge of the talks said Abu Dhabi and Riyadh were negotiating to acquire Bayraktar TB2 unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) from Ankara.

“They decided during the negotiations with the UAE to quickly deliver 20 armed drones,” the source told Reuters, adding they were transferred earlier this month.

READ MORE: When Do The Test Flights Of The Greek Drone "Archytas" Begin?