Egypt has received the first three Rafale jets during a ceremony held at Istres airbase in southern France on July 20.
The three Rafale DM (as the two-seaters destined to the Egyptian Air Force have been designated) represent the first batch of 24 “omnirole” combat planes sold in a $5.6 billion deal signed with Egyptian authorities earlier this year.
The aircraft will be flown to Egypt on Jul. 21 and will be used to reaffirm Egypt as a regional power. Cairo faces threats and instability both on its western border with Libya and on the eastern frontier in the Sinai, where Islamic State-affiliated groups are operating.
The deal with Egypt represents an important export success for Dassault, which eventually secured an order for 36 Rafales in India in April and also signed a deal with Qatar for 24 Rafale jets in May.
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