US approves upgrade of Egypt's Apaches to AH-64E

The US State Department has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale of a refurbishment package for 43 Boeing AH-64E Apache attack helicopters owned by Egypt.
The estimated $2.3 billion deal is not final, but was announced via a required notification by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency to the US Congress on 7 May.
Egypt intends to use these refurbished AH-64 helicopters to modernise its armed forces to address the shared US-Egyptian interest in countering terrorist activities emanating from the Sinai Peninsula, which threaten Egyptian and Israeli security and undermine regional stability,” says the Defense Security Cooperation Agency.
Over the last couple of decades, the USA has helped Egypt put down a Bedouin insurgency, which has used attacks on civilians and kidnappings of tourists to further its cause.
The deal would also come with weapons: Hellfire missile launchers, 2.75in tube rocket launchers, and M230 chain guns.
flightglobal

Egypt takes delivery of Second Batch of Rafale fighters

Egypt has taken delivery of three Rafale fighters from France, the second batch of fighter jets under a contact last signed last year.
The three fighters were delivered in Cairo on Thursday.
Egypt now has a total of six Rafales. The first batch of three aircraft was delivered in July.
Under the deal with France, Egypt ordered 24 Rafales and a FREMM frigate for its Navy. The frigate from DCNS is already operational.
upi.com

United States Delivers Four F-16 to Egypt

On October 29, US Ambassador in Cairo joined Egyptian military officials in a ceremony at the Cairo West Air Force Base to receive four F-16 delivered by the United States to the Egyptian Air Force. Welcoming the four U.S. Air Force pilots who made the 14 hour flight from the United States to Egypt.
The F-16 Block 52 were delivered under the “Peace Vector” program, which has provided F-16 fighter jets to Egypt for the last 30 years, and will be integrated immediately into the Egyptian Air Force fleet.
egypt.usembassy.gov

Egypt, France In Discussions Over NH90 Helicopter Buy

Negotiations were at an advanced stage as of October 1 between France, and Egypt for the sale of a significant number of NH90 medium helicopters. The order would be a follow-on to recent sales of French armament to the Arab country, especially corvettes, frigates and landing ships—all compatible with the NH90.
Egypt has not issued any formal request for proposals for the multi-role helicopter.
Saudi Arabia is believed to be funding Egypt’s latest weapons purchases.
Egypt may choose between the tactical transport (TTH) and naval (NFH) versions of the NH90, or a mix of the two. The NFH can operate from Gowind-class corvettes or FREMM frigates, and both variants can be based on a Mistral-class landing ship.
Russian candidates like the Kamov Ka-27/29 and the Mi-17 are seen as relatively old technology or not fit for operations aboard ships. Egypt recently ordered Ka-52 attack helicopters, also believed to be intended for use on landing ships. In addition to protecting the Suez Canal, the newly purchased helicopters may help the country support Saudi Arabia’s military campaign in Yemen.
Late last month, the French Navy took delivery of its 15th NH90 naval variant, the first to be delivered in final radar configuration.
ainonline

Egypt reportedly to buy 46 MiG-29s

Egypt has agreed a deal to buy 46 MiG-29 fighters, Russian business papers reported on 25 May.
The deal is expected to be signed in "the nearest future", according to two sources in the Russian aviation industry.
Neither the Russian state arms export agency Rosoboronexport nor RSK MiG, the aircraft's manufacturer, would comment on the deal.
There have been reports that Egypt was looking to buy the MiG-29 or the more advanced MiG-35 version since November 2013.
A MiG-29 contract would come after it was announced in February that Egypt would buy 24 Dassault Rafale multirole fighters.
janes

Indian Rafale deal to be finalised by end of May

India and France aim to finalise the deal for 36 Dassault Rafale fighters for the Indian Air Force (IAF) by the end of May.
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi is believed to have insisted on this deadline with his French counterpart Francois Hollande in Paris, soon after announcing the fighters' procurement on 10 April.
Once inked, the IAF will be the first customer, after the French Air Force, to acquire Rafales. Egypt has also agreed to buy 24 Rafales.
A delegation comprising senior French government officials and top Dassault executives is expected in New Delhi over the next few days to begin negotiating the fighter contract.
Dassault is reported to have agreed to more than double its annual Rafale building capacity from 11 to 24 aircraft. The company had slowed down Rafale production rate to around 11 platforms per year as no new orders were forthcoming.
The French government is also believed to have persuaded its air force to reduce its Rafale induction until the IAF contract is fulfilled.
Negotiations between the MoD and Dassault over the acquisition of 126 Rafales under the Medium MultiRole Combat Fighter requirement have been deadlocked since January 2012 due to disagreements about the responsibility for the 108 platforms to be licence built in India.
janes

India To Get 36 Dassault Rafale Fighters

Three years after India opted to purchase the Dassault Aviation Rafale for its MMRCA program in a deal that was to have all but 18 of 126 aircraft produced in India, the nation is now on the verge of finalizing the purchase of an additional 36 French-built Rafales.
In a statement issued April 10 during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to Paris, the Indian premier said New Delhi would purchase 36 Rafale jets in fly-away condition “as quickly as possible,” though both the Indian and French governments said further negotiations are still underway.
Modi and French President Francois Hollande agreed to conclude an intergovernmental agreement to supply the 36 Rafale aircraft under a deal that is separate from a three-year-old negotiation between Paris and New Delhi over the sale of 126 Rafale fighters under the MMRCA tender, which calls for 108 of the combat jets to be produced by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) in India.
The joint statement said delivery of the 36 Rafale aircraft would occur according to a timeframe compatible with operational requirements of the Indian air force (IAF), and that the aircraft and associated systems and weapons would be supplied in the same configuration as those already tested and approved by the IAF under the MMRCA tender.
If concluded, the deal would be a boon to Dassault Aviation, which is already riding high after recently selling 24 Rafales to Egypt, to be delivered by 2019.
aviationweek

USA Clears Sale of 12 F-16 To Egypt

The White House lifted an executive hold on weapon sales to Egypt Tuesday, as part of a broader attempt to "modernize" the military relationship between the two countries.
President Obama informed Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of the change in the administration's posture. The loosening of restrictions comes just days after Egypt began bombing operations against militants in Yemen.
Since a military coup in October 2013, the White House has frozen military sales to Egypt in hopes it would force democratic reforms in the nation.
In the short term, the US will clear the sale of 12 F-16 aircraft, 20 Harpoon missiles and up to 125 M1A1 Abrams tank kits, which had been held up.
defensenews

Dassault offers Malaysia 10-yr bank loan to fund Rafale purchase

Dassault has offered Malaysia a 10-year bank loan to support a purchase of the Rafale .
The package is similar to the one offered to Egypt, which in February ordered 24 Rafale fighters.
The repayment package offered to Malaysia features a 10-year loan provided by an unspecified French bank and guaranteed by the government of France.
Dassault is offering the Rafale to meet the Royal Malaysian Air Force's (RMAF's) severely delayed programme to procure a Multirole Combat Aircraft (MRCA).
janes

France To Modify Rafales for Egypt

The Rafale fighter jets sold to Egypt will be modified to remove nuclear missile capability and NATO standard communications.
Once adapted, the fighters will be delivered, with the first three in time for Egyptian pilots to fly the twin-engine fighter in Egyptian colors over the opening of a new waterway on the Suez Canal in August.
One of the Rafale upgrades to F3 standard in 2008 was the air-sol moyenne portée améliorée (ASMPA) missile tipped with the TN-200 nuclear warhead. That capability will be taken off the fighters for Egypt.
As Egypt is not part of NATO, the communication system will be adapted.
Egypt has started paying for its order for 24 Rafales, the first export win for the fighter jet.
Dassault will deliver five Rafales to France this year, and the first batch of three to Egypt, with a second three-strong batch in December or January.
Dassault has delivered 137 Rafales to France, with 43 remaining in the present fourth tranche. The company expects delivery in 2018 of the upgraded F3R version, adapted to fire the Meteor beyond-visual-range missile. Egypt will also receive that advanced version.
The French Navy has received two fighters upgraded to the F3 version from F1 with the remaining eight due to be modernized over two years.
defensenews

French Rafale combat jet deal with Egypt is signed

Egypt has signed the deal to buy 24 Rafale combat jets from France.
Egypt will also get a naval frigate and related military equipment as part of the package.
The official signing comes a year after France won a contract to sell Egypt four frigates .
Paris is hoping to sell 126 of the Rafale jets to India but the deal has yet to be finalised.
euronews

France in 'final stage' of talks to sell Rafale jets to Qatar

France is in the "final stage" of negotiations to sell up to 36 Rafale warplanes to Qatar.
Manufacturer Dassault Aviation is also in talks aimed at supplying 16 of the multi-role combat jets to Malaysia and has resumed discussions over potential fighter sales to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The UAE publicly rebuffed an offer to supply 60 Rafale jets in 2011.
France said last June it was confident of winning a deal soon to supply fighter jets to Qatar, which is shopping initially for 24 jets plus 12 options to expand its air force.
Competitors include Boeing's F-15 fighter jet, while the U.S. manufacturer is also seeking sales for its declining F-18 model, which is reportedly in consideration in Malaysia.
Elsewhere in the Gulf, the Eurofighter and F-18 are competing for a possible Kuwaiti deal for 28 jets but the Rafale is not a leading contender there.
India picked the Rafale three years ago over the Eurofighter Typhoon for a contract to supply 126 planes, but a deal has not been signed.
The contract with Egypt could unblock three or four other ones.
Bilateral negotiations between Egypt and France took only five months, taking competitors and most industry experts off guard. Three jets a year are expected to be delivered to Egypt in 2015, 2016 and 2017 with the remaining 15 sent by mid-2019.
There was no formal competition, though one defence source said there had been exploratory contacts between Egypt and the Eurofighter consortium but that questions had arisen over the availability of rapid export licences from Britain and Germany.
Eurofighter said it was confident of winning other orders. A spokesman said it had also submitted an offer to Malaysia.
Egypt,is also said to be interested in military transport aircraft.
It currently operates the Lockheed Martin C-130 and is the largest customer for the Airbus Group C-295, while it has long been a target for the Airbus A400M airlifter.
reuters

Egypt Conducts Airstrikes on Islamic State Targets in Libya

The Egyptian military said on Monday that it had carried out airstrikes in Libya in retaliation for the beheading of more than a dozen Egyptian Christians by a branch of the Islamic State extremist group there.
In a statement Monday morning, the Egyptian military said that it had conducted airstrikes at dawn against training camps and arms depots of the Islamic State group in Libya, but it did not provide further details. Egyptian warplanes had struck Derna, a town in eastern Libya that is a hub of Islamist militancy. It is also close to the Egyptian border, well within the range of the jets.
The airstrikes are a dramatic escalation of Egypt’s role in the continuing battle between armed factions in Libya for control of the country. With the backing of the United Arab Emirates, Egypt has worked covertly to support a Libyan general who is fighting to take back the capital and much of the coast from a rival coalition of militia groups, some of which are made up of Islamist extremists.
The Egyptian military said in a statement issued around 8:30 a.m. that the dawn strikes were “retribution and response to the criminal acts of terrorist elements and organizations inside and outside the country.”
Egypt’s air assault came less than 12 hours after the main Islamic State group released a video online that appeared to show fighters from the group’s self-proclaimed Tripolitania Province beheading more than a dozen Egyptian Christians.
The video of their beheadings Sunday night aroused special horror in Egypt and beyond because it was filmed with the theatrical brutality that has become a trademark of the Islamic State.
nytimes

Egypt opts for the Rafale

Dassault annonuces the Arab Republic of Egypt’s decision to equip its air force with the Rafale, continuing cooperation that dates back to the 1970s, and has seen the Mirage 5, the Alpha Jet and the Mirage 2000 fly in the colors of Egypt. .
Sources says the deal is for 24 Rafale fighters.
dassault-aviation

France confirms Rafale talks with Egypt

French Defence Minister said on Sunday that "advanced" talks with Egypt were being conducted over a potential sale of Dassault Aviation Rafale fighter jets.
Also on Saturday, Dassault's CEO, told Le Figaro daily the company was close to signing its first Rafale export contract, without specifying a country.
reuters

Egypt May Buy Rafale Fighters

France and Egypt are close to an agreement for the sale of twenty Rafale Fighters and two FREMM multi-mission frigates.
According to reliable sources, a French Delegationvisited Cairo early in the week to assess the security of Egypt in the event of an agreement with French manufacturers.
latribune

Egypt receives 10 Apache helicopters from U.S

Egypt received 10 Apache helicopters from the United States in the past week, a sign of easing tensions between the long-time allies confronting Islamist extremism across the region.
The United States originally announced in April that it had decided to lift its hold on the delivery of the attack helicopters, imposed last year after the military toppled elected president Mohamed Mursi and cracked down hard on his Muslim Brotherhood supporters.
The Pentagon said in September that the United States would deliver the helicopters to support Cairo's counter-terrorism efforts.
Egypt is fighting an Islamist insurgency targeting mostly security personnel and based mainly in the lawless Sinai Peninsula bordering Israel and the Gaza Strip.
The most powerful militant group there, Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis, swore allegiance last month to Islamic State, the al-Qaeda offshoot that swept across northern Iraq and Syria earlier this year and now faces U.S.-led air strikes.
Egypt has created a one-kilometer buffer zone along the border with Gaza by clearing houses and trees and destroying subterranean tunnels it says militants use to smuggle arms from Islamist-controlled Gaza.
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who as army chief ousted Mursi, has also expressed concern over militants who are thriving in the chaos of post-Gaddafi Libya and are opposed to the Cairo government.
Critics say Egypt's crackdown on Islamists is trampling on human rights and expanding to include peaceful protesters as well as secular and liberal activists.
reuters

Egypt receives ten Apaches

After delivery was suspended for many months, the Egyptian Air Force has finally received ten Apache helicopters from the United States.
On November 24 the Egyptian Air Force (EAF) released a photo showing the helicopters, covered in white protective plastic, after being delivered to an Egyptian port
On April 22 this year, the United States was lifted its suspension of military aid to Egypt, allowing deliveries to go ahead.
Egyptian military aid was suspended in October 2013.
Egypt was also due to receive four F-16C/D fighter jets, M1 Abrams main battle tank kits (for local assembly) and Harpoon Block II missiles but it appears that delivery of these items is still suspended. The United States normally sends $1.5 billion in mainly military aid to Egypt every year.
The Egyptian Air Force ordered 12 Apaches in 2009 to augment the 35 that have been in service since 2003 with the Egyptian Air Force’s 550 Attack Helicopter Regiment. The status of the remaining two Apaches is not clear.
defenceweb

Egypt orders eight more Airbus C295 tactical transports

Egypt has ordered eight more Airbus C295 transports in a deal which will take its fleet to 20 and makes it the biggest customer for the market-leading tactical airlifter.
The new batch of aircraft will be delivered to the Egyptian Air Force by Airbus Defence and Space beginning next year and will follow the 12 aircraft previously ordered, of which six are already in service.
The contract also includes a service support package for spares, training, and maintenance of the fleet.
airbusdefenceandspace

RAC MiG contemplating a fifth-generation fighter based on MiG-35

RAC MiG is contemplating building a fifth-generation fighter which would use its current MiG-35 platform as a "foundation" for the introduction of new technologies.
RAC MiG President didn't detailed how advanced studies are, but believes it is very likely that the new combat type will be developed, and to be ordered.
The development wouldn't bring MiG into conflict with its sister airframer Sukhoi, which is developing its own stealthy type, the T-50/PAK-FA.
The two aircraft are quite different projects and each would be targeted to resolve different missions.
The maximum take-off weight of the current MiG-35 is around 5t lighter than that of the larger T-50, providing greater efficiency for the majority of projected missions.
However, in the meantime RAC MiG is still waiting for confirmation of a long-awaited order from Russia's defence ministry for the present MiG-35.
All the relevant documentation covering the deal for an undisclosed number of aircraft is with the Russian ministry of Defence.
Export orders are also being pursued, with Egypt recently linked to a commitment for 24 examples of the Klimov RD-33MK-powered type.
Additionally, in April RAC MiG received an order for 16 additional MiG-29SMTs for the Russian air force, which will keep the production line active until work can start on the newer model.
flightglobal