After the negotiations for the sale of about a dozen new Dassault Rafale fighter jets to the Egyptian Air Force, was blocked by France it appears that the gridlock has now been lifted. The deal was previously blocked by the French’s Ministry of Economy and Finance. Dassault has now delivered the final three of the Egyptian Air Force Rafale fighter jets on 28 November.
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| Egyptian air force Dassault Rafale pilots after an exercise |
Egypt Air Force ordered a total of 16 Rafale DM twin seat and eight Rafale EM single seat fighters on 16 February 2015.
Egypt has been modernizing its armed forces with support from France in recent years, beginning when Jean-Yves Le Drian was French minister of defense. Egypt spent around €7 billion with the French arms industry between 2014 and 2016, and currently has several contracts ongoing with French companies, including a military telecom satellite for its air force, in addition to the Rafale fighters, and four Gowind 2500 corvettes for its navy.
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| Egyptian air force Dassault Rafale taking off |
Egyptian Rafales will be armed with Mica air-to-air missiles, Scalp cruise missiles and AASM Hammer guided missiles.
