Egypt ordered helicopters from Russia for the French-built Mistral carriers
Egyptian authorities have requested that Russia supply Ka-52 helicopters for the Mistral ships that were made in France.
“We have already received a request from the Egyptian side for the supply of Ka-52 ship-based helicopters. The customer is considering the possibility of forming several helicopter squadrons. The exact quantity will be agreed on in the course of further negotiations,” the deputy director of the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, Anatoly Punchuk, said.
According to military experts, Cairo will purchase no fewer than 16 Ka-52 helicopters, and a similar number of Ka-29/31s, from Russia.
The possibility that the helicopter carriers will be equipped with American Apaches has not been ruled out.
France signed a contract with Egypt for the sale of two helicopter carriers in October 2015. Previously, they had been ordered by the Russian navy, but for political reasons were not transferred. Now it is being discussed in the media that Cairo may cede these landing ships to Moscow.
As Egyptian TV outlets reported a few days ago, billionaire Nassef Onsi Sawiris, who had allocated funds for the purchase of the Mistrals by Egypt, decided to re-sell them to Russia for a symbolic price of $1. The sale of the two warships to Russia was allegedly approved by the president of Egypt.