The United Arab Emirates Air Force (UAEAF) () is the

air force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

of the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...

(UAE), part of the

United Arab Emirates Armed Forces The United Arab Emirates Armed Forces () are the armed forces of the United Arab Emirates. They consist of the United Arab Emirates Army, UAE Army, United Arab Emirates Navy, UAE Navy, United Arab Emirates Air Force, UAE Air Force, United Arab E ...

. Its predecessor was established in 1968, when the Emirates were still under

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

rule. Since then, it has undergone a continual reorganisation and expansion in terms of both capability and numbers of aircraft. Currently, the UAEAF has around 4,000 personnel and operates approximately 560

fixed wing A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using aerodynamic lift. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft (in which a rotor mounted on a spinning shaft generates ...

and

rotorcraft A rotary-wing aircraft, rotorwing aircraft or rotorcraft is a heavier-than-air aircraft with rotor wing, rotary wings that spin around a vertical mast to generate lift (force), lift. Part 1 (Definitions and Abbreviations) of Subchapter A of Chapt ...

History

The UAEAF's history starts in May 1968, with the formation of an Air Wing of the Abu Dhabi Defence Force (ADDF) under

British rule The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or dire ...

. Its key roles being to provide both a transport service and a ground attack support capability for ADDF land forces. Major investment in the early 1970s assured an expansion in terms of capabilities, quality and quantity of aircraft.

AirForces Monthly ''Air Forces Monthly'' (AFM) is a military aviation magazine published by Key Publishing Ltd, based at Stamford in the English county of Lincolnshire in the United Kingdom. Established in 1988, the magazine provides news and analysis on mi ...

, p. 60. It also led to the renaming of the Air Wing to the ADDF Air Force in 1972. Training and instruction was provided by the

Pakistan Air Force The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) (; ) is the aerial warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces, tasked primarily with the aerial defence of Pakistan, with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy when re ...

. During the 1973 Arab-Israel War (6-25 October 1973), the ADDF Air Force's

Caribous The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represent ...

served as air ambulances in Jordan. The

Emirate of Dubai The Emirate of Dubai is one of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates. It is the most populous emirate of the UAE. The capital of the emirate is the eponymous city, Dubai. Governance Dubai is governed as an absolute monarchy by the A ...

maintained its own air component, the Dubai Defence Force Air Wing, until 1999, when the two were effectively merged to become what is now the United Arab Emirates Air Force. Although the integration of the two independent forces has been complete, a small degree of autonomy exists at the operational command level, with the Western Air Command being headquartered in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

and the Central Air Command in

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

. Since the 1980s, a combination of regional instability and high oil prices has resulted in an ambitious modernisation of the UAEAF, with the goal of attaining a level of capability matching the highest

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

standards. In the 1991 Gulf War, the UAE helped other countries by carrying out airstrikes against Iraqi forces. In 2014, the UAE Air Force along with the

Egyptian Air Force The Egyptian Air Force (EAF) () is the aviation branch of the Egyptian Armed Forces that is responsible for all airborne defence missions and operates all military aircraft, including those used in support of the Egyptian Army, Egyptian Navy ...

carried out airstrikes in Libya against Islamist factions in

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis (from , meaning "three cities") may refer to: Places Greece *Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in the Pelasgiotis district, Thessaly, near Larissa ...

. In September 2014, UAE Air Force aircraft joined in US-led air strikes against terrorist targets in Syria and Iraq that later became known as

Operation Inherent Resolve {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Operation Inherent Resolve , partof = the international military intervention against the Islamic State and the War on terror , image = , caption = U.S. Navy B ...

. These operations were suspended after a Jordanian pilot was captured by Islamic State militants in late December 2014; pending improvements in US search and rescue capabilities in the region. In 2015, UAE Air Force dropped bombs on ISIS targets in Syria. One of them was Major Mariyam Al Mansouri, the first female UAE Air Force pilot. The UAE military is also part of the

Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen On 26 March 2015, Saudi Arabia, leading a coalition of nine countries from West Asia and North Africa, launched a military intervention in Yemen at the request of Yemeni president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, who had been ousted from the capital, Sa ...

Personnel and training

United Arab Emirates Air Force serviceman

The UAEAF consists of about 4,000 personnel. In the 1970s and 80s, the UAEAF was instructed by

pilots on

Dassault Mirage 5 The Dassault Mirage 5 is a French supersonic attack aircraft/fighter-bomber designed by Dassault Aviation during the 1960s and manufactured in France and other countries. It was derived from Dassault's popular Mirage III fighter and spawned sev ...

s, the backbone of the UAEAF at the time. Even today, many of the personnel are ex-Pakistan Air Force officers and technicians. Most of the flying instructors at

Al Ain Al Ain () is a city in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, and the seat of the administrative division of the Al Ain Region. The city is Oman–United Arab Emirates border, bordered to the east by the Omani town of Al-Buraimi. Al A ...

are from Pakistan, training pilots using

Grob G 115 The Grob G 115 is a general aviation fixed-wing aircraft, primarily used for flight training. It is built in Germany by Grob Aircraft ( Grob Aerospace before January 2009). The E variant with a 3-blade variable pitch propeller is in servi ...

Pilatus PC-7 The Pilatus PC-7 Turbo Trainer is a low-wing tandem-seat training aircraft, designed and manufactured in Switzerland by Pilatus Aircraft. The aircraft is capable of all basic training functions, including aerobatics, instrument, tactical, and ...

Aermacchi MB-339 The Aermacchi MB-339 is a military jet trainer and light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Italian aviation company Aermacchi. The MB-339 was developed during the 1970s in response to an Italian Air Force requirement that sought a re ...

, and

BAE Hawk The BAE Systems Hawk is a British single-engine, subsonic, jet-powered advanced trainer aircraft. Its aluminum alloy fuselage is of conventional string-frame construction. It was first known as the Hawker Siddeley Hawk, and subsequently produc ...

63 aircraft. A few officers of No. 12 Squadron (Hawk 102) at Al Minhad Air Base, are also from the Pakistan Air Force. Some of these officers are on deputation (active service), but most are on civilian contracts with the Air Force Headquarters in Abu Dhabi. Numerous officers of other nationalities have also trained UAE pilots, among them Pakistanis, Moroccans, Canadians, Jordanians, and South Africans. Women have started training as pilots. The first batch consisted of engineers given approval for flight training. So far, only three women have become actual fighter pilots and one a transport pilot. One woman pilot was grounded due to an ejection from a training flight in a Hawk 63. Instructors at

Al Dhafra Air Base Al Dhafra Air Base (ADAB, , ) is a military installation in the United Arab Emirates. The base is located approximately south of Abu Dhabi, and is operated by the United Arab Emirates Air Force. Facilities The airport sits at an elevation of a ...

are now mainly from the US, as the UAEAF has retired its Mirage 5s in favour of

F-16 The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it e ...

s. Currently there are five main air bases operational, split between the Western and Central Air Command. The Joint Aviation Command has its own airbase and operates a wide range of helicopters. Candidates apply to the Khalifa bin Zayed Air College, which is located at the

Al Ain International Airport Al Ain International Airport (, transliterated: Maṭār Al-ʿAyn Ad-Duwalī) is an airport located west-northwest (login required) of Al Ain in the Eastern Region of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates. It was opened on 31 Mar ...

. They first go through a rigorous schedule of academics (Basic Level: Military Sciences), fitness and officer training. Those who are selected as cadets then start the second phase of academics: Flight Sciences (Aeronautical Science). Cadets who pass the assessment period of the second phase are designated aviation cadets and start flight training. The first aircraft cadets get to fly is the Grob G115 TA. Those who qualify then go on to fly the Pilatus PC-7. On this aircraft, they learn the basics of flying, take-off and landing techniques and procedures followed by a bit of aerobatics. Following the Primary Flying Course is the Basic Flight Course, piloting the Hawk 63. Graduates are graded and assigned accordingly to one of three options: the Advanced Strike course at Minhad on the Hawk 102 aircraft, transport aircraft, and helicopters. At Minhad, the new pilots learn Basic Fighters Manoeuvres, drop bombs and learn to fly cross-country to a neighbouring country, commonly

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

. Upon completion of the Advanced Strike course, officers are selected either for the F-16 (Block 60) or the

Dassault Mirage 2000 The Dassault Mirage 2000 is a French multirole, single-engine, delta wing, fourth-generation jet fighter manufactured by Dassault Aviation. It was designed in the late 1970s as a lightweight fighter to replace the Mirage III for the French Air ...

-9, both at Al Dhafra AB. A few pilots are selected to learn to fly the F-16 with the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

162d Fighter Wing The 162nd Wing (162 WG) is a unit of the Arizona Air National Guard, stationed at Morris Air National Guard Base, Arizona. If activated to federal service, the wing is gained by the United States Air Force Air Education and Training Command. ...

Tucson Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

Overview

2007 marked the culmination of the largest procurement programmes ever undertaken by the UAE Air Force, with the final deliveries of the 80 F-16E/F Block 60 "Desert Falcons" and approximately 60 upgraded Mirage 2000-9, giving the air force a considerable

multirole A multirole combat aircraft (MRCA) is a combat aircraft intended to perform different roles in combat. These roles can include air to air combat, air support, aerial bombing, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, and suppression of air defens ...

capability. These two investments represented a total expenditure of around $10 billion, with additional money spent on infrastructure and logistics. A $6.4 billion contract with

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

for the supply and support of the 80 F-16s was signed in March 2000, while a $3.4 billion deal for the purchase of 30 new Mirage 2000-9 and retrofitting of the 33 older UAE Mirage 2000s was signed earlier in 1998.

, p. 61. Missiles were also purchased: 160

AGM-88 HARM The AGM-88 HARM (High-speed Anti-Radiation Missile) is a tactical, air-to-surface anti-radiation missile designed to home in on electronic transmissions coming from surface-to-air radar systems. It was originally developed by Texas Instruments ...

s, 1,000 or more

AGM-65 Maverick The AGM-65 Maverick is an air-to-ground missile (AGM) designed for close air support. It is the most widely produced precision-guided missile in the Western world, and is effective against a wide range of tactical targets, including armor, a ...

s, about 500

AIM-120 AMRAAM The AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) ( ) is an American Beyond-visual-range missile, beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile capable of all-weather day-and-night operations. It uses active transmit-receive radar guidance ...

s, 270

AIM-9 Sidewinder The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a short-range air-to-air missile. Entering service with the United States Navy in 1956 and the Air Force in 1964, the AIM-9 is one of the oldest, cheapest, and most successful air-to-air missiles. Its latest variants rema ...

s and 52

AGM-84 Harpoon The Harpoon is an all-weather, over-the-horizon, anti-ship missile manufactured by McDonnell Douglas (now Boeing Defense, Space & Security). The AGM-84E Standoff Land Attack Missile (SLAM) and later AGM-84H/K SLAM-ER (Standoff Land Attack Mis ...

s. In November 2017, the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces announced their intention to sign a contract with

Dassault Aviation Dassault Aviation SA () is a French Aerospace manufacturer, manufacturer of military aircraft and business jets. It was founded in 1929 by Marcel Dassault, Marcel Bloch as Société des Avions Marcel Bloch (Marcel Bloch Aircraft Company). After ...

for the upgrade of its Mirage 2000-9 aircraft. French newspaper La Tribune reported the modernization would cost roughly €300 million. After a competition between the BAE Hawk,

KAI T-50 Golden Eagle The KAI T-50 Golden Eagle () is the first South Korean supersonic advanced jet trainer, light combat aircraft, and light strike-fighter developed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) with Lockheed Martin. It is South Korea's first indigenous ...

and

Alenia Aermacchi M-346 Master The Aermacchi M-346 Master is a family of military Twinjet, twin-engine transonic advanced jet trainers and light combat aircraft. Originally co-developed with Yakovlev as the Yak/AEM-130, the partnership was dissolved in 2000 and then Alenia Ae ...

, the UAEAF announced the acquisition of 48 trainer and light attack aircraft, with the first deliveries to take place in 2012. The other training types that are thought to be near replacement are the 30 Pilatus PC-7s and five Aermacchi MB-339s serving with the Air Academy at Al Ain.

, p. 62. The MB-339 is also in use with the UAEAF flight display team,

Al Fursan Fursan Al Emarat (; ) is the Aerobatic display team of the United Arab Emirates Air Force and Air Defence. It was formed in 2008 with Italian-built Aermacchi MB-339NAT jet aircraft. The team has a total of seven aircraft that symbolizes 7 Emir ...

. The UAEAF has operated 20 IAR 330 Puma helicopters since the late 1970s. These have been recently upgraded to the IAR-330SM standard by IAR Ghimbav in

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

in cooperation with

Eurocopter Airbus Helicopters SAS (formerly Eurocopter S.A., trade name, trading as Eurocopter Group) is the helicopter manufacturer, helicopter manufacturing division of Airbus. It is the largest in the industry in terms of revenues and turbine helicopte ...

. These aircraft, supplemented by a further ten ex-

South African Air Force The South African Air Force (SAAF) is the air warfare branch of South African National Defence Force, with its headquarters in Pretoria. The South African Air Force was established on 1 February 1920. The Air Force saw service in World War II a ...

reworked SA-330s, are expected to remain in service for at least 15 years.

, p. 63. Although no replacement for the Puma fleet is required in the immediate future, the force will be supplemented by 26

Sikorsky Sikorsky or Sikorski may refer to: * Sikorsky (comics), a Marvel Comics character * Sikorsky (crater), a lunar crater * Sikorsky Aircraft, an American aircraft manufacturer People with the surname * Brian Sikorski (born 1974), Major League Basebal ...

UH-60M ''Battlehawks'', with 390 AGM-114N Hellfire II missiles. 30

AH-64A Apache The Hughes/McDonnell Douglas/Boeing AH-64 Apache ( ) is an American twin-turboshaft attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear and a tandem cockpit for a crew of two. Nose-mounted sensors help acquire targets and provide night vis ...

helicopters were modernised as well, to the AH-64D Longbow standard, and a dozen

Eurocopter Fennec The Eurocopter, later Airbus Helicopters AS550 Fennec (now H125M) and AS555 Fennec 2 are lightweight, multipurpose military helicopters manufactured by Eurocopter Group (now Airbus Helicopters). Based on the AS350 Ecureuil and AS355 Ecureuil ...

s were recently acquired for

special forces Special forces or special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

use. The most important facility of the UAEAF is the

, with almost the entire

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domina ...

fleet located there. However, in order to prevent all of the air defence and strike assets being located at a single base, a $1 billion, completely new facility has been constructed deep in the Abu Dhabi desert, near the border corner with Saudi Arabia and Oman, near Al Gharbia, housing at least one Mirage 2000 unit. Al-Safran is believed to have opened between around 2008. It is 3,000 m long and has aircraft parking nearly the same size as in

Al Udeid Air Base Al Udeid Air Base () is one of two military bases southwest of Doha, Qatar, also known as Abu Nakhlah Airport (). It houses the Qatar Emiri Air Force, United States Air Force, Royal Air Force, and other foreign forces. It is host to a forward h ...

, Qatar. A 4,000 m runway at

Al-Safran Air Base The Al-Safran Air Base (, alternatively called Liwa) is a military air base operated by the United Arab Emirates Air Force, located approximately 80 miles southwest of Abu Dhabi, near Madinat Zayed. History Construction of the base cost an estim ...

was built around 2008.

Structure

As of 2008, the structure of the United Arab Emirates Air Force is as follows:

Western Air Command - HQ at Abu Dhabi

*Fighter Wing -

**1st ''Shaheen'' Squadron - F-16E/F Block 60 ''Desert Falcon'' **2nd ''Shaheen'' Squadron - F-16E/F ''Desert Falcon'' **3rd ''Shaheen'' Squadron - F-16E/F ''Desert Falcon'' **71st Fighter Squadron - Mirage 2000-9EAD/DAD **76th Fighter Squadron - Mirage 2000-9EAD/DAD **86th Fighter Squadron - Mirage 2000-9EAD/DAD (Al Safran Air Base) *Transport Wing - Al Bateen Air Base **C-130 Squadron -

C-130H Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designe ...

**CASA Squadron - CN-235M-110 **Puma Squadron - IAR-330SM Puma **6th Squadron - AB.412HP/SP, Bell-214B **Naval Squadron - AS.332B/M Super Puma, AS.565SB Panther

Central Air Command - HQ at Dubai

* Al Minhad Air Base (helicopter base) **102nd CAS Squadron - BAE Hawk Mk.102 **Transport Squadron - C-130H-30, L-100-30 Hercules **Special electronic missions Squadron Saab 340 AEW&C **Air-to-air refueling Squadron Airbus A330 MRTT *

Dubai International Airport Dubai International Airport () is the primary international airport serving Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is the world's busiest airport by international passenger traffic as of 2024. It is also the busiest airport in the Middle East as ...

(transport aircraft)

Joint Aviation Command (JAC) - HQ at Abu Dhabi

*Group 10 (Assault) - Al Dhafra Air Base **

AH-64D Apache The Hughes/McDonnell Douglas/Boeing AH-64 Apache ( ) is an American twin-turboshaft attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear and a tandem cockpit for a crew of two. Nose-mounted sensors help acquire targets and provide night vis ...

*Group 18 (Special Operations) - Sas Al Nakheel Air Base **

UH-60M The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk is a four-blade, twin-engine, medium-lift military utility helicopter manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. Sikorsky submitted a design for the United States Army's Utility Tactical Transport Aircraft System (UTTAS) ...

CH-47F The Boeing CH-47 Chinook is a tandem-rotor helicopter originally developed by American rotorcraft company Piasecki Helicopter, Vertol and now manufactured by Boeing Defense, Space & Security. The Chinook is a Military transport helicopter, heav ...

*Group 21 (Navy) - Sas Al Nakheel Air Base **AS332B1, AS332M1, AS565MB, AS565SB *Group 22 (COIN and Reconnaissance) - Swaihan Air Base **

Cessna 208B The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the FAA in October 1984 and its Cargoma ...

DHC-6-300 The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada in the mid-1960s and still in production today. Built by De Havilland Canada from 1965 to 1988, Viking Ai ...

, DHC-6-400, Thrush S2R-T660 *Group 23 (Observation, Training) - Sas Al Nakheel Air Base ** AS550C3 *Group 25 (Assault)- Sas Al Nakheel Air Base **

*Group 26 (Assault) - Al Minhad Air Base, Sas Al Nakheel Air Base ** UH-60L **

*Group 28 (Observation and Reconnaissance) - Al Ain/Camp Hazza **Bell407GX

Commanders

Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan (born 11 March 1961), also known as MbZ, is an Emirati royal and politician who is serving as the third and current president of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Abu Dhabi since 2022. Mohamed completed his e ...

*Mohamed Al Qamzi *Ibrahim Nasser Mohammed Al Alawi

Equipment

Aircraft

Joint Air Command

Retired

Previous aircraft operated by the Air Force were the

Boeing 707 The Boeing 707 is an early American long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, the initial first flew on Decembe ...

, Aeritalia G.222,

CASA C-212 The CASA C-212 Aviocar is a turboprop-powered STOL medium cargo aircraft designed and built by Spanish aircraft manufacturer Construcciones Aeronáuticas SA (CASA). It is designed for use by both civil and military operators. The C-212 was d ...

, SF.260T,

Hawker Hunter The Hawker Hunter is a transonic British jet propulsion, jet-powered fighter aircraft that was developed by Hawker Aircraft for the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It was designed to take advantage of the newly dev ...

Alouette III Alouette or alouettes may refer to: Music and literature * "Alouette" (song), a French-language children's song * Alouette, a character in ''The King of Braves GaoGaiGar'' Aerospace * SNCASE Alouette, a utility helicopter developed in France i ...

, SA 342 Gazelle,

Bölkow Bo 105 The Messerschmitt-Bölkow-Blohm Bo 105 is a light, twin-engine, multi-purpose helicopter developed by Bölkow of Ottobrunn, West Germany. It was the first light twin-engine helicopter in the world, and the first rotorcraft that could perform ae ...

Bell 206 The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- and twin-engined helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec, plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter progr ...

Bell 214 The Bell 214 is a medium-lift helicopter derived from Bell Helicopter's ubiquitous UH-1 Huey series. The Bell 214ST shares the same model number, but is a larger, much-modified twin-engine derivative. Design and development The original d ...

helicopter.

Future equipment

Future programs include the Next-Generation Fighter, request for proposals has been sent to

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

F/A-18 Super Hornet The Boeing F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornet are a series of American supersonic twin-engine, carrier-capable, multirole fighter aircraft derived from the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet. The Super Hornet is in service with the armed forces ...

Dassault Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault SAS (; also GIM Dassault or Dassault Group) is a French corporate group established in 1929 with the creation of Société des Avions Marcel Bloch (now Dassault Aviation) by Marcel Dassault, later led by his so ...

Rafale The Dassault Rafale (, literally meaning "gust of wind", or "burst of fire" in a more military sense) is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation. Equipped with a wide range ...

Eurofighter The Eurofighter Typhoon is a European multinational twin-engine, supersonic, canard delta wing, multirole fighter. The Typhoon was designed originally as an air-superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems ...

Typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...

F-35A Lightning II The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is an American family of single-seat, single-engine, supersonic Stealth aircraft, stealth strike fighters. A multirole combat aircraft designed for both Air superiority fighter, air superiority and att ...

and

Sukhoi The JSC Sukhoi Company (, ) is a Russian aircraft manufacturer headquartered in Begovoy District, Northern Administrative Okrug, Moscow, that designs both civilian and military aircraft. Sukhoi was founded in the Soviet Union by Pavel Sukhoi ...

Su-57 The Sukhoi Su-57 (; NATO reporting name: Felon) is a Twinjet, twin-engine stealth aircraft, stealth Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft developed by Sukhoi. It is the product of the PAK FA (, prospective aeronautical comp ...

. On 3 December 2021 it was announced that the UAE had signed an order for 80 Rafale F4s, 1st received at 30 January 2025.

References

*Yates, Athol (2020). ''The Evolution of the Armed Forces of the United Arab Emirates''. Warwick: Helion & Company. *"Force Report: UAE Air Force & Air Defence", ''

'' magazine, January 2008 issue.

External links

UAE Air Force Order of BattleThe Evolution of the Armed Forces of the United Arab Emirates
by Athol Yates {{Authority control 1968 establishments in the Trucial States Military units and formations established in 1968