The US is considering selling to the Egyptian Air Force either F-35s or F-15s if Cairo will pledge not to buy the Su-35 Flankers.
One problem with Washington is that it does not like Russia selling defense products cheaper than US options, it wants to be the only supplier. US officials are in talks to negotiate a sale to the Middle Eastern with conditions that the Egyptian Defense Ministry should follow.
Cairo Expresses Interest in US Fighters
Specifically mentioning Egyptian orders for Russian Su-35S heavyweight fighters, which were placed in the latter part of 2018, with nearly twenty airframes already constructed; reported Military Watch Magazine.
Sources claimed that Cairo was interested in buying the F-35 stealth fighter, but the Egyptian government said the sale of the Su-35 must be stopped before an agreement, noted the EurAsian Times.
While the sale of fifth-generation F-35s might be contentious for several reasons, another option is to offer newer versions of the F-15 Eagle, the oldest fighter class in the world still very much in production and one that Egypt desired to purchase in the late 1970s.
Selling Egypt F-35s has several problems; for example, neighboring Turkey was kicked out of the program, and the United Arab Emirates was refused access mainly because it chose to use Huawei infrastructure for its telecommunications network. Israel is now the only active player in the region, citing the Middle East Eye.
Whereas many major Huawei 5G infrastructure users, most recently Germany, have been given the approval to purchase F-35s, and Egypt is highly doubtful to give up its own telecoms sector reform plans, selling the aircraft for no more compromises than jettisoning the Su-35 Flanker deal would be controversial.
Current Planes Used by Egypt
Egyptian Air Force currently has almost 200 F-16 Fighting Falcons, the F-35's immediate fourth-generation precursors, even as those in the Egyptian fleet have been broadly christened the world's worst F-16s due to their heavily scaled back avionics and lack of any viable beyond visual range weaponry.
If Egypt is accepted to acquire F-35s or F-15s, they would almost definitely be similarly downgraded, leaving Egypt's defenses a little better off than they are now.
This was primarily viewed as one of the primary motivations why Egypt's neighbor and long-standing military rival Israel had been supposedly going to pressure Washington to agree to sell F-15s to the Egyptian Defense Ministry, making sure that there would be no possible issues to Israeli air superiority on its western border if Egypt did receive the heavy flankers.
Its Unwise To Buy American Equipment
It does not allow its equipment to be used without permission, even after it has been bought and even where the bases will be deployed. It's a deal-breaker that is problematic for all buyers of US defense products.
If Cairo goes with the Su-35, there will be no problem, especially since the US likes not to sell spare parts. Countries like Pakistan, Indonesia, and Egypt faced this dilemma in 2013 as Muslim countries.
Another important factor might be the F-35 operators' lack of independence, as indicated by the fact that they were used to eavesdrop on their operators, according to Norwegian military sources.
The Egyptian Air Force will have a better deal with the Su-35 Flankers than the US will its conditions when buying American equipment.
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