During our November 2016 Greece tour news came out that the withdrawal of the RF-4E from 348MTA at Larissa was scheduled for early May 2017. At the same time it was suggested that the unit was trying to allow photographers to come to the base to witness the events of the withdrawal, similar to what happened when the A-7 left the Hellenic Air Force.
After that it took some time for things to become clear. Eventually the unit was able to send out invitations in February 2017 for a spotters day on 4 May and a flying display on 5 May (for the official withdrawal). When they announced this things went fast. Eventually 47 people chose to travel to Greece with 4Aviation.
And so we ended up with groups at both Amsterdam-Schiphol and Düsseldorf Airport on Wednesday 3 May 2017. All ready for their flight to Thessaloniki. The two groups met at Thessaloniki Airport, where some others had already arrived as well. After waiting for the last two participants to arrive we boarded our bus and were heading for Larissa. Because of the group size we booked rooms in two hotels and early in the evening everybody had been handed a room key. The majority of the group ended up enjoying the local food and drinks later that evening.
