The US State Department has approved a potential foreign military sale of Assault Amphibious Vehicles (AAVs) to Greece.
Valued at $268 million, the possible sale includes the delivery of 63 AAV personnel variants, nine AAV command variants, and four AAV recovery variants.
It also covers the supply of 63 50-caliber machine guns, an undisclosed number of MK-19 grenade launchers, and M36E T1 thermal sighting systems.
Additionally, Athens requested associated spare parts, support equipment, training and technical support, and calibration services.
The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency stated that the proposed sale would help the Hellenic Armed Forces protect its maritime interests and infrastructure on NATO’s southern flank.
It would also help improve Greece’s capability to address existing and future threats.
Only Secondhand AAVs
The AAVs delivered to Greece once the deal is approved by Congress will be drawn from US Marine Corps waterborne operations in 2021.
No newly-manufactured vehicles will be handed over to the Hellenic Armed Forces, as all were already in service with the US military.
The service barred the amphibious vehicles from operations following a 2020 sinking that killed nine military personnel off the coast of Southern California.
An investigation found that the fleet of AAVs was old and poorly maintained.
Despite saying that the vehicles would only be used again in water if needed for crisis response, the US has decided to sell them to Greece to support its maritime counterterrorism and counter-piracy efforts.
If the deal goes through, Greece will join Spain, Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines in using secondhand AAVs from the US.