UAE Will Sell Used Mirage 2000 Jets to Morocco and Egypt After Rafale Purchase - Reports

Following the announcement that the United Arab Emirates (UAE) had purchased 80 Rafale lightweight ‘4+ generation’ fighter jets from France, the fate of its fleet of Mirage 2000 aircraft which the new jets were expected to replace was left in question. The UAE has deployed Mirage 2000s since the 1980s, and currently fields 66 airframes including 59 of the enhanced Mirage 2000-9 and 7 Mirage 2000 RAD reconnaissance variants. Older airframes preceding the Mirage 2000-9 are thought to currently be in storage. With the Mirage 2000 and Rafale using much of the same infrastructure for maintenance and being compatible with the same armaments, it was considered likely that the UAE would retire the older aircraft by the time the final Rafales were delivered. A number of reports have since emerged that Abu Dhabi intends to sell the aircraft to Morocco and Egypt, which have been important strategic partners and operate the Mirage F1 and Mirage 2000 respectively. 

Egypt was the first ever foreign client for the Mirage 2000 and made a one off purchase of just 14 fighters which began to be delivered from 1985. These older Mirages are expected to be retired in the near future, with the Rafales Egypt purchased in May 2021 previously having been expected to replace them. UAE Mirages could now potentially take their place, and field not only newer avionics and sensors but also have access to MICA standoff missiles. Although below average in performance, the MICA is still much more capable than anything the Egyptian Air Force operates other than its modern R-77 missile used by its MiG-29M and Su-35 jets. In the Moroccan Air Force the Mirage 2000 is expected to replace either the F-5E or the Mirage F1, both of which are ageing third generation designs which the country previously intended to replace with more expensive ‘4+ generation’ F-16Vs. Morocco was one of the first countries France attempted to market the Rafale to, but the country instead chose the American F-16C/D which is its only post third generation fighter in service today. Morocco already operates the MICA missile after having heavily enhanced its Mirage F1 jets to be compatible with them. The Mirage 2000 is still a near obsolete aircraft, and although an improvement on the fighters which make up the majority of the Egyptian and Moroccan fleets it is still very comfortably outmatched by fighters deployed by their respective neighbours such as the Israeli F-16I and F-15I and the Algerian MiG-29M and Su-30MKA.