In the northeast corner of Africa lies the Sahara desert, the largest in the world. Occupied by mountains, …show more content…
With the Soviet Union being a major contributor (at the time), the ADF consisted roughly of 80,000 ground and air personnel, and 50,000 conscripts. Its main constituents consisted of 100 antiaircraft-gun battalions, 65 battalions of SA-2 Surface to Air Missiles (SAMs), 60 battalions of SA-3 SAMs, 12 batteries of improved HAWK SAMs (I-HAWK), and 1 battery of Crotale missiles (Air Defense Force). Integration of all radars, missile batteries, air bases, and command centers into an automated command and control system linking them via the Hawkeye early warning aircraft was the focus of the ADF. Thru 1989, the majority of modern weapons utilized in the air defense system were the 108 medium-altitude I-Hawk SAMs acquired from the United States (Air Defense Force). A British firm helped modernize 400 older Soviet-made SA-2 SAMs and about 240 SA-3s, which provided short-range defense against low-flying targets. Based on the SA-2, Egypt began production of the Tayir as Sabah (Morning Flight) along with its introduction of Amun (Sky guard) a gun-missile-radar system (Air Defense Force). The ADF mounted sixty Soviet SA-6 SAMs on track vehicles as tactical launcher, sixteen provided mobile launching platforms for fifty French-manufactured Crotale SAMs. With the advancement of its military, cooperation with the United States to develop an advanced Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence (C3I) system for assimilation of data to engage targets simultaneously has been vital to anti-air operations. Egyptian Air defense requires technical and maintenance support of existing radars along with Hawk, Chaparral, Sparrow, and the Avenger Air Defense Systems. Egypt looks to procure additional 2D and 3D radars along with Sentinel radars. Upgrades to Chaparral, Avenger systems and long term procurement of the Patriot Missile