Page 50 - ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΗ ΑΕΡΟΠΟΡΙΚΗ ΒΙΟΜΗΧΑΝΙΑ - 50 ΧΡΟΝΙΑ | HELLENIC AEROSPACE INDUSTRY - 50 YEARS

50
01
the establishment
of the Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI)
At the beginning of the Metapolitefsi pe- riod, the declining Cold War rivalry and the emergence of turkey as a major
threat to Greek interests, led to the need for greater autonomy for the Hellenic Armed Forces, especially in the field of military equipment manufacture and maintenance. In 1970, the Karamanlis government launched an organized effort to develop the do- mestic defense industry. In this context, it was decid- ed to establish a large aviation industry modeled on foreign companies. Until the establishment of HAI, the Hellenic Air Force’s needs for maintenance and repair of its equipment were mainly covered by the KEA (State Aircraft Factory) which, however, was ill-
equipped to meet the new requirements.
On May 16, 1975, Law 43/1975, i.e. the found- ing act of the HAI, was published in the Gov- ernment Gazette. the Greek government held the bare ownership, with 51% of the shares, and the Hellenic Industrial Development Bank (EtBA) held 41%. In November 1975, an agreement was announced between the HAI and a consortium
of American companies that would undertake the construction of the factory, the equipment of the facilities, and the provision of training and techni- cal assistance. the consortium was led by Lock- heed Aircraft International Group (LAIG) and was made up of Lockheed Aircraft Service (LAS), General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Cor- poration, and the construction company Austin.
the first Board of Directors was appointed by ministerial decree in February 1976. Industrialist Iason Stratos became the first chairman of the Board of Directors and HAI. From the outset, the Hellenic Air Force had a very close relationship with the HAI and cooperated with its manage- ment through the Hellenic Air Force Aviation In- dustry Control Service, guiding the emerging com- pany in its infancy. Upon its formation, the new management tackled the difficult task of rapidly developing an aviation industry from scratch.
the tanagra region was selected for the con- struction of the facilities, on an 1,800-stremma site adjacent to the 114th military wing of the Hellenic Air Force. Austin was responsible for the design