Air combat during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus

Background of the Conflict

See main article: Turkish Invasion of Cyprus

On the 20th July 1974, Turkey launched a combined air and sea invasion of the northern portion of the island of Cyprus following a coup by the Athens-backed Cypriot National Guard against the democratically-elected President, Archbishop Makarios. The Turkish Government cited the protection of the Turkish Cypriot minority of Cyprus as its main justification for the military attack.

Cyprus National Guard Air Command

This force possessed a handful of aircraft, consisting of five fixed-wing aircraft and two helicopters, operated primarily from Nicosia International Airport. The CNG/AC had previously possessed five combat-capable T-6A Harvard attack planes which had been sent secretly from Greece, but these were returned to Greece before 1974 due to political considerations.

At this time, the CNG/AF possessed two attached anti-aircraft gun battalions, based at Lakatamia and Tymvou Airfields.

During the conflict in 1974, none of the CNG/ACs aircraft were used to engage the Turkish invasion force or any other combatant group in combat, though it is reported that one or more reconnaissance flights were flown on the 20th July 1974. Aside from this, the CNG/AC was practically grounded for the duration of the invasion.

Noteworthy is the fact that between 1964 and 1974, the Cyprus Government had repeatedly considered procuring Yak-11 combat aircraft and SA-2 Guideline surface-air missiles from the Soviet Union, but these plans had been scrapped due to political sensitivities.

Cyprus National Guard Artillery Command

This force had inherited a considerable quantity of military equipment from Great Britain, and efforts had been made to augment anti-aircraft equipment with supplies from the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia. By 1974, the CNG Artillery Command possessed anti-aircraft flak guns of 12.7mm, 14.5mm, 20mm, 40mm and 104mm from various sources, the smaller calibres distributed across most of its battalions.

Turkish Air Force

This force was heavily committed to operations over Cyprus for the duration of the 1974 invasion, and consisted of multiple fighter squadrons equipped with F-5, RF-86, F-100, F-102 and F-104 combat aircraft, as well as C-130, C-160 and C-47 transport planes.

The Turkish Air Force sustained multiple losses during the invasion as a combined result of anti-aircraft fire and flight-into-terrain. What follows is a list of reported losses of the Turkish Air Force from the conflict:

Turkish Army Air Corps

This force comprised primarily of Bell-model UH-1H and B-206 helicopters as well as Dornier Do-27 special operations fixed-wing aircraft.

Hellenic Air Force