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China Deploys J-16 to Egypt for First-Ever Dogfight Drills Against Real Rafales – SOFX

Egypt
China Deploys J-16 to Egypt for First-Ever Dogfight Drills Against Real Rafales – SOFX

A People’s Liberation Army Air Force J-16 fighter flew one-on-one air combat serials against an Egyptian Rafale on August 23, the first time China’s heavyweight fighter has trained against the French-built jet and the first PLAAF J-16 deployment to Africa.

The engagement came on the opening flight day of Eagles of Civilization 2026, the second joint air exercise between China and Egypt. The Egyptian Armed Forces announced the start of the drill on August 22, and China’s Ministry of National Defense said it runs through early September.

The J-16, a twin-seat, twin-engine 4.5-generation strike fighter derived from the Su-30 Flanker family, is roughly analogous to the American F-15E. Egypt flew both the Rafale and the MiG-29M2, a Russian-built multirole fighter, putting the Chinese contingent against two different generations of Egyptian aircraft in the same window.

Almost all of the imagery came from Chinese outlets. The PLAAF released cockpit video packaged under the title “Shenyang J-16 vs Dassault Rafale,” showing an Egyptian Rafale making a high-speed pass off the Chinese jet.

Chinese state media described the day as medium- and close-range combat drills. The Egyptian military spokesman confirmed only that the Rafale and MiG-29M2 took part and released no comparable footage.

This is the second time in under a year that China has run a J-16-versus-Rafale scenario. Late in 2025, the PLAAF staged a simulated wargame at Xuchang in Henan province, pitting eight J-16s against six mock Rafales and airing the footage. Egypt is the first time the matchup has been flown against real Rafales.

During the May 2025 India-Pakistan clash, Islamabad said its Chinese-supplied J-10C fighters downed multiple Indian aircraft, including Rafales, a claim India rejected. India flies the same airframe Egypt does.

The intelligence value has limits. Egyptian Rafales are not configured like Indian ones, and differ in weapons, electronic warfare suites, and pilot training.

Rick Joe, a widely followed PLA analyst, cautioned against reading outcomes into any leaked results, noting the rules and restrictions of such exercises are never made public.

No scores, rules of engagement, or independent assessment of either jet have been released.

PLA officer Shen Hao told CCTV the syllabus would move from one-on-one and two-on-two fights to what he called “more integrated system-level operations” as pilots on both sides learned each other’s habits. Beyond the fighters, China deployed a Y-9LG stand-off jammer, a KJ-500 airborne early-warning aircraft, YY-20A tankers, Y-20 airlifters, and Z-20 utility helicopters.

At least six J-16s from the 98th Air Brigade were photographed at Karachi on August 20 while transiting to Egypt. Chinese media said the fighters flew more than 3,700 miles across two continents in nearly nine hours, refueled in flight by a YY-20A tanker. Flight-tracking data logged the six J-16s and four Y-20s on the same leg.

Egyptian military expert Major General Samir Farag, addressing speculation that the drill was tied to a fighter purchase, said talk of buying J-10s or other systems fell outside its scope.

Egypt has not announced any acquisition connected to the visit.



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