W&R Thessaloniki Greece experiance?

[erik_kamphuis]

Anyone experiance with spotting the preserved aircraft around Thessaloniki?
I will be there next weekend on a non spotting trip but will try to grap some easy preserved ones if possible.
F-5 war museum north Thessaloniki
Gate F-5 Thessaloniki-Micra. Are more visible from road or if you land here?
Thessaloniki-Sedes any preserved from distance visible?
Sabre at fuel station west of airport and F-5 near beach close to this.
All are 2018 last noted on Eurodemobbed.
Are there still any active mil based at the airport, CL215/415?? Is the CL215 fuselage on the field there?

Any info is welcome.

[ehusmann]

I can't tell you from experience, but in the category 'easy' W&R around there, there's a few more. 3x F-5 visible (war museum, on a base but visible, near the beach) and there's another on the base with the war museum, which may be visible from the street to the west, but that's not confirmed (here).
As well as a U-17 to the south of the airport (here).

Edit: And also the other gate guards (F-5 and F-84), last noted in 2020.

[erik_kamphuis]

Thanks Erwin.
I now know I have to sit LHS in the plane when landing at RWY34 to see most of planes on the base. Is the C-47 at NWW side near the Sea still there? Not the one next to the Caravelle (Aeroclub). Found some pictures on Flickr/ Spottingmode.
Also I hope to see some of the preserved line at Sedes. With bing/Maps nothing is blurred.
I will post next week what I saw.

[erik_kamphuis]

Seen Thessaloniki while landing Sept 23rd:

CL415 2050 dump (serial read), wings are laying further NW:
1x F-5A next to the CL415
West side:
13x F-5 (2 are in brown camo)
2x F-5 pres HQ

Fire fighting ramp south side:
(A)B.212/412 yellow c/s
1x Mi-8 UN c/s
2x CL.415 Greece AF
F-4E (67-0345) std

Aeroclub east side:
C-47 camo std

Later extra seen from the sea side from a boat:
C-47 camo std north side near sea
ca 4x F-5 std north side near sea

September 24th the white C-47 on roof café; ca 70km west of Thessaloniki town was seen "café Aeroporto",. This is 92641 in Katahari.

September 25th the War museum in Thessaloniki was visited with F-5A 13353 pres outside.
A walkaround the mil complex west of the museum for the F-5 preserved inside the place did not succeed. (Looked over every wall and from entrance street also nothing)

September 26th when departing Thessaloniki:
CL.415 2050 dump + 1x F-5A NW side (should be 63420)
13x F-5 West side (sand c/s F-5B 611 and F-5A 10485 could be read from taken pictures)
2x F-5 at HQ (= F-5B 613 and RF-5A 97174)
RF-5A (97167) and F-84F (26866) pres SW side
F-5B (612) pres main gate south side

Fire fighting ramp:
F-4E (67-0345) 1x grey F-5A, 1x sand camo F-5A std ramp, this are NF-5A 3069 and RF-5A 97173
CL.415 20.. and 2053?
Mi-8 UN c/s .... Can this still be RA-27172 ?
(A)B.212/412 yellow c/s; code 2 on door
And today 1x S-64 Skycrane orange c/s

North side near sea visible between shelters while taxien:
1x F-5A no canopy with brown back and black tail s/c
2 or 3x F-5 std in 1 tone grey
C-47 camo std (= KP255)
And the C-47 (= 92613) at the aeroclub was seen

Any serials are welcome if not clear from Eurodemobbed /Spottingmode

Erik

[erik_kamphuis]

Here my full log with confirmed serials from Greek spotters:

Thessaloniki-Micra, 23 september 2022:

Stored SW-side:
(63420) F-5A ex HAF, l.grey camo, next to HAS
2050 CL.415GR ex 383 MEEA, fuselage dumped (serial read)
Wings of this CL415 are laying a bit more west near the sea.

Stored South-side HAS (seen from runway to south) +26th:
1st group: (all serials confirmed from pictures dec’21 with base visit and match with positions, marks etc)
(70379) F-5A ex HAF, grey camo pos.1
10485 F-5A ex HAF, grey camo pos.2 serial read sept 2022
(01)611 F-5B ex HAF, sand camo pos.3 serial read sept 2022
(89058) F-5A ex HAF, light grey camo pos.4

2nd group: (all serials confirmed from pictures dec’21 with base visit and match with positions, marks etc)
(01609) F-5B ex HAF, grey camo, central line tank pos.5
(01608) F-5B ex HAF, grey camo pos.6
(89092) F-5B ex HAF, l.grey camo pos.7
(69164) F-5A ex HAF, l.grey camo pos.8

3rd group: (all serials confirmed from pictures dec’21 with base visit and match with positions, marks etc)
(38412) F-5A ex HAF, l.grey camo pos.9
(01398) F-5A ex HAF, blue c/s pos.10
(13378) F-5B ex HAF, l.grey camo pos.11
(38422) F-5A ex HAF, l.grey camo pos.12
(89075) F-5A ex HAF, sand camo pos.13

Preserved in front of old HQ building (+26th):
(all serials confirmed from pictures dec’21 with base visit and match with position)
(01613) F-5B ex HAF, grey camo
(97174) F-5A ex HAF, special mks

Fire fighting ramp:
(67-0345) F-4E ex HAF, pres
(2053) CL.415GR 383 MEEA
(2056) CL.415MP 383 MEEA (with small radome)
(N234PH/672) Bell.214B.1 yel/blue c/s, code 2
(ER-MGL) Mi-17-1V UN c/s (c/n 498M01) Orman titles = Forrest

Stored HAS NW-side near sea (4x F-5 also 26th):
(KP255) Dakota IV ex HAF, stored
(3012) NF-5A ex HAF+Klu, grey
(38409) F-5A ex HAF, blue c/s
(38419) F-5A ex HAF, blue c/s
(89068) F-5A ex HAF, special c/s
(69135) F-5A ex HAF, blue c/s no tail

(Serial Dakota confirmed from base visit dec’21, also C-47 49622 was seen dec 2021 not now in sept’22. These 5 F-5 serials confirmed by Greek spotter as being stored in this area. Also faded marks, 1 missing canopy matches with the pictures found in internet/Eurodemobbed. GE shows a 5th grey F-5 that can only be 69135 missing it’s tail, and this is the only serial remaining all F-5’s at Thessaloniki (only wreck camo F-5B 69230 has gone?/not seen). All F-5s were seen the 23rd from a boat sea side.

Preserved others:
(97167) RF-5A ex HAF, pres SE-side

Aeroclub (+26th):
(92613) C-47A ex HAF, stored
(SX-BSS)?? BAe.125 civil, stored
SX-AVE, SX-AVF PA-31T civil ramp

Thermi-Perea, on roof fuelstation, 23 september 2022:
(19294) CL-13 Sabre Mk.2 ex CAF, pres as “SX-JGM” in wh/blue fake c/s
(confirmed from spotters who lives in Thermi)
-------------------------------------
Aeginion “Aeroport Café”, 24 september 2022:
(92641) C-47A ex HAF, pres on roof café
-------------------------------------
Thessaloniki, 25 september 2022:
(60-0362) KC-135R 22ARW Gold11 OTT *
13353 F-5A ex HAF, blue c/s, pres War museum
---------------------------------------------
Thessaloniki-Micra, 26 september 2022:
Stored SW-side:
(13367) F-5A ex HAF, l.grey camo, half parked in shelter
(63420) F-5A ex HAF, l.grey camo, next to HAS
2050 CL.415GR ex 383 MEEA, fuselage dumped
(2 F-5 serials confirmed from pictures dec’21 with base visit and match with positions)

Fire fighting ramp:
(All serials CL415 from Greece spotter and helicopters confirmed from pictures from 2 wks earlier base visit and Skycrane flew 27th local as seen on Radarbox. 2x F-5 and F-4 pictures from 2019 basevisit found on www.sbap.be)
(3069) NF-5A ex HAF+Klu, grey, pres
(97173) RF-5A ex HAF, Vietnam camo, pres
(67-0345) F-4E ex HAF, pres
2053 CL.415GR 383 MEEA
(2056) CL.415MP 383 MEEA (with small radome)
(N173AC) S-64E Erickson Air-Crane, ex CH-54A Tarhe 66-18413
(N234PH/672) Bell.214B.1 yel/blue c/s, code 2
(ER-MGL) Mi-17-1V UN c/s (c/n 498M01)

Preserved others: (serials confirmed from base visit dec’21)
(26866/866) F-84F ex HAF, pres SE-side
(97167) RF-5A ex HAF, pres SE-side
(01612) F-5B ex HAF, pres main gate east