Iniochos 2026 – Back to the roots?
From March 09th until March 20th 2026 the annual exercise Iniochos took place again at Andravida Air Base. Iniochos is the biggest Hellenic-led exercise throughout the year. It is a key training event for a wide variety of scenarios.
The 2026 iteration featured guests from a variety of nations. France sent 6 Mirage M-2000D, Slovenia sent 2 PC-9 and Albania participated with an AS-532 Super Puma. Further, Poland supported the exercise with special forces, and Serbia, Georgia and Croatia sent observer teams.
The Hellenic Air Force participated with a wide variety of jets. These include the F-16C/D, Mirage 2000, Dassault Rafale, and of course the iconic F-4E Phantom II. Additionally, the Hellenic Special Warfare Command, Navy, and Army supported the exercise. After making its first appearance in 2023, the F-16 tactical simulators of the Operational Synthetic Training Squadron from the Air Tactics Center expanded the exercise into a digital dimension.
Iniochos 2026 withstanding geopolitical tensions
Most likely due to the ongoing situation in the Middle East, the number of international participants was rather small. The early lineup for Iniochos included, for example, USAF F-15Es and KC135 Stratotankers, as well as an AW-169 from Cyprus. As the situation further escalated, the assets were withdrawn from the list of participants.
The history of Iniochos
The exercise started out as a national exercise in the 1980s, making it an exercise with an extremely rich history. It focused on Combined Air Operations (COMAO) and was designed to train the Hellenic assets in a realistic environment and develop new tactics. The exercise was based at Larissa, the home to the 110th CW, which was the organizer of the exercise. In 2005 the exercise was decentralized with the aircraft operating from their respective home bases. The planning process was transferred to the Air Tactics Center at Andravida, shaping the exercise as we know it today. In 2013 the exercise transformed into a single base concept with Andravida being the main base. This maximized the realism and the intensity of training. In 2015 Iniochos continued to develop with the very first invitational version (INVITEX). The first guests were the IAF and USAFE. Since then the exercise expanded with its peak in 2025. Read more about the record-breaking iteration here.
In 2026 the exercise was more focused on the HAF assets, with a large number of deployed jets. This enhanced the interoperability between the different squadrons within the HAF and with international guests. Throughout the exercise, 914 sorties were flown in a total of three waves per day. The main training goals were air operations versus Integrated Air Defense Systems (IADS), Offensive counter air, Airfield Attack, Slow Mover Protection (SLOMO), Combat Search And Rescue (CSAR), Close Air Support (CAS) and Anti Surface Warfare.
The future of Iniochos
This year´s iteration displayed how dependent the planning of multinational exercises is. Many influences like geopolitical events are factors. Although the exercise was not as large as planned, it still was possible to provide realistic, high-level training. The future of Iniochos is staying rather unclear. During Iniochos 2026, there were no further updates on the status of Andravida. We expect the exercise to move to Araxos in the next year(s), as this was stated previously by hellenic officials in 2025. Nevertheless, Iniochos will remain a key factor for hellenic and international training.