Egypt orders 30 more Rafales

摘要

DASSAULT AVIATION confirmed in an announcement on May 4 that 30 Rafales had been ordered by the Egyptian Air Force (EAF) to supplement the 24 previously delivered. Dassault noted that once all 54 have been delivered, the EAF will become the second-largest operator of the type in the world, after the French Armee de I'Air et de I'Espace.Egypt's Defence Ministry had announced the deal the day before the Dassault confirmation, saying that it would be financed by a loan that would be repaid over a ten-year period. The EAF had signed a contract for its first 24 Rafales (comprising 16 two-seat Rafale DMs and eight single-seat Rafale EMs) on February 16, 2015.The initial batch of aircraft were delivered to Cairo on July 21, 2015, and the 24th and the final one arrived in July 2019.Although the split between single-and two-seat aircraft in the new order was not announced, it is reported to comprise 18 Rafale EMs and 12 Rafale DMs.