Chinese HQ-9B Long Range Air Defence Systems Now Guard Egyptian Skies

<p >Egyptian military sources have reportedly confirmed that the Egyptian Air Force has procured the Chinese <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/hq9b-multi-layered-air-defence-unveiled" target="_blank">HQ-9B long range air defence system</a>, providing a new backbone to the country’s previously highly limited surface-to-air missile network with potentially transformative impacts for the balance of power in the air between the country and potential adversaries. Although Egypt was previously reported to have procured the Russian S-300V4 system in the mid-2010s, this was never fully confirmed, with multiple reports indicating that the system was placed in storage due to Western threats to impose economic sanctions on Cairo. Uncertainty regarding the procurement of S-300s, and the small scale of the reported order, makes the procurement of the HQ-9B a transformative development for Egypt’s air defences, which previously relied largely on ageing Vietnam War era systems such as the Soviet S-75 and S-125, supported by short and medium range Russian Tor-M2 and BuK-M2 systems acquired in the 2010s. The ability of even late Cold War era medium and long range air defence systems to cause serious complications for a modern air force have recently been highlighted by Ukraine’s effective use of systems such as the S-300PS/PT to limit the Russian Air Force’s ability to shape the ongoing war effort. This has increased the attraction of acquiring more modern equivalents to systems for counties facing potential adversaries with greater aerial warfare capabilities. </p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/04/21/article_6805be6b9e1bd6_31010805.jpeg" title="Missile Launch During Exercises Involving HQ-9B Systems"></p><p >The HQ-9B has gained growing traction on export markets, with sales reportedly having been made to Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/pakistans-hq9p-complicate-indian-operations">Pakistan</a>, with the former two having selected the system over competing Russian alternatives to succeed <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/nato-hated-S200-longest-range-air-defence">Soviet era S-200s</a> in their arsenals. A combination of the threat of Western sanctions on Egypt should it procure competing Russian systems, and Russia’s inability to make rapid deliveries of its systems due to a long queue of orders both domestically and from India and Belarus, likely contributed to making the HQ-9B appear more attractive. The much more sophisticated state of China’s electronics and radar industries mean that the HQ-9B likely retains advantages over its Russian rivals in associated performance areas. The HQ-9B is by far the most widely produced long range surface to air missile system outside Russia, and deploys missiles, radars and command units from mobile trucks to maximise mobility and thereby improve survivability. The systems are able to network with Egypt’s existing air defence assets, as well as with its MiG-29M fighters, and will be highly compatible with the Chinese J-10C fighters that a number of sources have <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/egypt-j10c-f16s-reports" target="_blank">reported</a> Egypt recently ordered. </p><p ><img src="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/m/articles/2025/04/21/article_68066173b56022_81538890.jpeg" title="BuK M2 Medium Range Air Defence System in Egyptian Service"></p><p >Egypt’s interest in Chinese aerial warfare assets is thought to have been stimulated by a shifting of power trajectories in the Middle East, as Cairo has seen tensions grow with several countries in the Western world as well as with their regional strategic partners Israel and Turkey. Western backing both for Israel’s ongoing plans to evict the population of the neighbouring Gaza Strip, and for Turkish efforts to bolster Islamist militants in Syria and Libya, are all considered to pose major threats to Egyptian security. The Egyptian Air Force’s current capability to confront the Israeli fleet remains limited, while support in the United States for<a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/turkey-f35a-washington-ankara-back" target="_blank"> equipping Turkey</a> with F-35 fighters is expected to similarly leave Egypt at a steep disadvantage. The <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/ten-years-since-the-wests-war-against-libya-how-it-served-as-a-warning-regarding-us-and-european-intentions" target="_blank">Western-led assault</a> on neighbouring Libya with Turkish participation  in 2011 is also reported to have left a strong impression on the Egyptian leadership, and contributed to the consensus that buildup of aerial warfare capabilities independently of the Western world is necessary.</p>

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