An A-10 Thunderbolt, a Su-57E and a Chinese KJ-500 radar aircraft, all on the same airfield and all courting the same customer. That is not a scene you get at many airshows, and it explains why this young event in the Egyptian desert is being watched so closely.
A legendary name, a young airshow
El Alamein is a name most aviation enthusiasts know from history books: the desert battles of 1942 that helped decide the war in North Africa. Today the coastline around it is being transformed into a resort and business destination, with apartment blocks and hotel complexes rising for miles around. The airport that hosts the airshow lies roughly 45 minutes’ drive from El Alamein city.
The idea of a major international airshow in Egypt is very recent. The first edition took place on 3–5 September 2024. It attracted more than 200 exhibitors and around 15,000 visitors, according to the Royal Aeronautical Society, which called it respectable for a debut held in a fairly remote location. The second edition ran from 8 to 10 September 2026, preceded by a symposium on 7 September.
A show for professionals
El Alamein is a trade event. Entry is limited to approved business and government visitors, such as military delegations, air force commanders, civil aviation regulators, airline executives and procurement officials. It is not a public airshow with open ticket sales, and that shapes its character. It is less a festival than a giant showroom with a flying programme attached.
The scale is still substantial. Post-show reports speak of more than 250 exhibitors, over 100 aircraft and around 50 flying demonstrations. Egyptian media reported over 100 official delegations from about 80 countries. The exhibitor list included Airbus, Boeing, Dassault, Lockheed Martin, Leonardo, Turkish Aerospace and China’s CATIC, plus Russia’s arms exporter Rosoboronexport. Rivals who rarely share a hall elsewhere were all there.
The programme also looked beyond fighters. The 7 September symposium covered the future of air power, artificial intelligence, autonomous systems and multi-domain operations. With the Egyptian Space Agency among the organisers, space had its own place next to defence and commercial aviation.
Russia: the Su-57E in Africa
The most talked-about aircraft was the Su-57E, the export version of Russia’s fifth-generation fighter. It appeared on the static display and in the flying programme. Reuters described the appearance as the jet’s African airshow debut, noting how it roared over the arid landscape near the coast. Its solo routine was one of the show’s most striking displays.
Rosoboronexport presented the aircraft with a broad weapons package: RVV-MD2 and RVV-BD air-to-air missiles, the Kh-38MLE, the Kh-69 cruise missile and the Kh-58UShKE anti-radiation missile. Russia also unveiled a family of new air-launched weapons for the Su-57E, publicly shown for the first time. They included the S-71M and the S-71K, described by defence media as stealthy munitions that blur the line between a low-cost attack drone and a cruise missile. Official details were scarce. Alongside them, the United Aircraft Corporation showed an upgraded Yak-130M trainer, presented as its first appearance in the region.
China: a whole system
China took a different approach from previous years. At the inaugural show in 2024 it sent the J-10 fighters of the August 1st Aerobatic Team and a Y-20 transport. This time the PLA Air Force brought four types that made their first overseas airshow appearance: the J-16 fighter, the Z-20 helicopter, the YY-20 aerial tanker and the KJ-500 airborne early warning aircraft. They were shown on the ground. A Wing Loong-10B long-endurance drone was also on display.
The four aircraft arrived in Egypt straight after the Egyptian-Chinese “Eagles of Civilization 2026” exercise, which ran from late August into early September. It covered air combat, air superiority and combat search and rescue. The J-16s flew against Egyptian Rafales in what reports describe as the type’s first deployment outside Asia. Egypt’s State Information Service listed a larger Chinese deployment for the exercise: six J-16s, two YY-20A tankers, two Y-20 transports, one KJ-500 and two Z-20K helicopters. A YY-20A tanker was also photographed refuelling Egyptian Rafales.
The message was hard to miss. China was not only selling a fighter but a full air combat system: fighter, radar aircraft, tanker and helicopter working together. The timing was deliberate as well, because 2026 marks 70 years of diplomatic relations between China and Egypt.
USA: the long-term partner
The American presence was large and its tone was partnership. The US Air Force and the Texas Air National Guard brought an F-15E Strike Eagle, an F-16, an A-10 Thunderbolt II, and both a C-130J and a C-130H. All were on static display, with Airmen giving tours to delegations. A US pavilion hosted more than 25 American companies, and the US Air Forces Central band performed on site.
The A-10 drew particular attention, with its seven-barrel 30 mm cannon that fires about 3,900 rounds a minute. A US general at the show stressed that allies and partners gain most when they understand each other’s platforms long before they might operate together in a real crisis. Egypt has flown American fighters since the early 1980s and operates one of the largest F-16 fleets outside the United States, so the relationship is well established.
Egypt buys from everyone
Egypt’s own aircraft on the ramp showed how it thinks about procurement. American F-16s and Apaches stood beside French Rafales and Mirage 2000s, Russian MiG-29Ms and Ka-52 attack helicopters, and Italian AW149 helicopters. Egypt has ordered 54 Rafales in two batches, 24 in 2015 and 30 in 2021, and the type was mentioned again as a candidate for another order.
This mixed fleet is the reason the show works. Egypt has spent decades avoiding dependence on a single supplier, so no one holds a monopoly. American, Russian, Chinese, European and Turkish companies can therefore all present their offers openly in front of the same buyer.
In the sky
The flying programme drew participants from Egypt, France, Saudi Arabia, Spain, India, the UAE, Türkiye, Russia and Greece. The Egyptian Air Force Academy’s Silver Stars flew their K-8E jet trainers. The Royal Saudi Hawks flew a formation display on Hawk aircraft, and the UAE’s Al Fursan team also performed. The Turkish Stars flew NF-5s.
Deals, drones and a little Tutankhamun
Business was done alongside the flying. Air Cairo signed a firm order for 15 Airbus A320neos on the opening day, its first direct purchase from Airbus after building its fleet mainly through leasing. It has grown from seven aircraft five years ago to more than 45, and aims to exceed 130 by 2034. The Egyptian Ministry of Military Production signed a cooperation agreement with a foreign company and held talks with firms from France, Italy, Bulgaria and the UK.
Egyptian industry showed its own products, including the “Jabbar” series of domestically produced drones. Turkish and Emirati companies presented loitering munitions and air defence systems, among other equipment. Not everything was military: the Tourism and Antiquities Ministry’s pavilion featured a miniature model of halls of the Grand Egyptian Museum, with replicas of Tutankhamun artefacts. It was a reminder that the show also promotes Egypt as a destination.
What’s next
The organisers are already looking to the next edition, which their website places in September 2028. If the growth from 2024 to 2026 continues, El Alamein will keep expanding as a meeting place where the world’s air forces and manufacturers compare notes and negotiate.
