The “secrets” of Nea Anchialos

• The finding seeks to put the blame on “Hadjipetris”

• The inspection that took place at the 111 Combat Wing the day before the explosions

• Senior Air Force retirees fail to explain how air-ground bombs were blown up

 By Paris Karvounopoulos 

The 111 Combat Wing in Nea Anchialos is the largest airbase of the Hellenic Air Force since the largest number of F-16 fighter aircraft is stationed there. Outnumbered, but it lags behind “qualitatively” since it “hosts” the older “versions” of F-16s. The most modern F-16s are stationed at Souda and Araxos. Nea Anchialos was… almost lost to a fire and the responsibilities as it seems will be shared in such a way that all those involved will “get off lightly”… The only sure evidence we have is about who saved the 111 Battle Wing at the last moment: “general wind” that changed direction.

Senior Air Force retirees are unable to explain how air-to-ground bombs, which were roughly stored in the Karabas area, about 5 km from the 111 Combat Wing facility, were blown into the air. “The heat load caused by the fire is the cause,” said army General Staff sources, but even this justification does not convince several retired airmen who have served at the base.

Among them are the current protagonists: the Chief of General Air Staff Themistocles Bourolias and the Chief of Tactical Aviation Georgios Fassoulas have “served” as commanders from the 111 Combat Wing. Therefore, they know it very well.

The Chief of Tactical Air Force, Vice Admiral George Fassoulas, 24 hours before the fire started to threaten the 111 Combat Wing for good, had made an inspection and found nothing that needed to be corrected. The ammunition in the NATO-approved stores was not at risk, since, as insiders say, “even if you throw a lit rag into the stores, fire is not caused.” With the MK-82 air-to-ground bombs that were “stored” in open spaces, there wasn’t a concern? Was it judged that fire would not cause a problem?

From the early hours of the fire, however, it appeared that the situation was getting out of control. According to what is also stated in the report, the Chief of Tactical Aviation, George Fasoulas, contacted the Fire Department several times to request immediate containment of the fire that appeared to be approaching the Karabas area, where ammunition from the 111 Combat Wing was stored. This interception never took place and many are asking the question: “When the fire in West Attica approached the refineries in Aspropyrgos, correctly all the fire brigade forces rushed to stop it. Why was the same not done in Nea Anchialos?”

However, this question and the given failure of the Fire Brigade to stop the fire in time, do not absolve the Air Force and the command of the unit from any responsibility. The MK-82 bombs stored in open but protected areas may be old – as some have been quick to say to downplay the extent of the damage – but with proper “kits” they are usable and absolutely useful for the operational needs of the Air Force. If the fire was dangerously close to the area where the bombs were located, why was no effort made to move them elsewhere or take other actions to prevent the explosions?

This is a question that will have to be answered by the 111 Combat Wing command. The commander was also the Chief of the General Air Staff Themistocles Burolias. From this position, he was transferred to the 111 Combat Wing, first as Vice Commander and then as Commander. The Chief of the General Air Staff obviously had complete confidence in him. So much so that since last March the 111 Combat Wing had no sub-commander. He was finally found after the explosions and near-total destruction of the base.

It is, of course, the commander of 111 Combat Wing who is currently “paying the price”. He was removed from his position, by the decision of the Chief of the General Air Staff Themistocles Burolias. He was placed in a position at the Headquarters of the Tactical Air Force. The government was immediately looking for somebody in order to show reflexes to the public. But it seems that it “cut off the head” of the man who, either by instinct or by luck, saved it from its worst nightmare. A nightmare that has cost many burned acres, homes, and civilian property. The government is trying at all costs to avoid its own Mati and in Nea Anchialos the nightmare did not become reality thanks to the decision of the commander of the 111 Combat Wing.

Seeing the flames getting dangerously close to the Karambas area where the bombs for the F-16 fighter jets were stored and realizing that the heat load had risen dangerously, the commander, who was present at the site, ordered the unit’s firefighting forces to withdraw. The decision was a life-saving one, because a few minutes later – some say five minutes – the explosions began. If the 111 Combat Wing personnel on fire safety duty had remained on site, the number of casualties would have been high. It is estimated that up to 30 people were at the scene of the explosions. The commander’s decision to withdraw was life-saving.

 The conspiracy scenarios 

The conclusion submitted to the Minister of Defense Nikos Dendias will have the logic that all conclusions in Greece have when something goes wrong. They are looking for…Hajipetris to put the blame on and if they don’t find him, they find others like…Hajipetris, they share the blame and the matter is being continuously postponed. This is the logic of the finding for what happened at the 111 Combat Wing as well.

It should be noted that in addition to the Air Force ammunition, there were fuel lines in the area and anyone can imagine what would have happened if the winds did not become an ally and continued to direct the fire towards the ammunition and fuel.

Obviously, there is absolutely no excuse for what happened in Nea Anchialos and what would almost happen. The inability to provide a logical explanation has given rise to a multitude of scenarios, with some crossing the boundaries of logic and entering the realm of conspiracy theories. The most popular of these want the ammunition explosions to be too convenient to “take care of the ‘logistics’ of the weapons we sent to Ukraine”. There is absolutely no evidence to support these scenarios, which the government doesn’t need anyway. The issue of sending weapons to Ukraine is not even in the public debate and there is no question of any control over how many and what kind of weapons we sent to Ukraine.