The force's motto is 'Higher and higher for the sake of glory' (Arabic: إلى العلا في سبيل المجد, I‘la’ al-'olà fī sabīl al-magd).

The first commander of the EAAF was Squadron Leader Victor Hubert Tait RAF, a Canadian, former Senior Air Advisor on the British Military Mission in Egypt.

As the Egyptian border was threatened by an Italian and German invasion during the Second World War, the Royal Air Force established more airfields in Egypt.

As a result, few additional aircraft were supplied by Britain, however the arm did receive its first modern fighters, Hawker Hurricanes and a small number of Curtiss P-40 Tomahawks.

When second and third raids followed shortly afterwards, the British were ready and the entire Egyptian force was shot down – the last aircraft being baited for some time as the RAF pilots attempted to get a close look at its markings.

One of the first Egyptian Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-19 units was the 15th Air Brigade, consisting of Nos 20 and 21 Squadrons, which became operational at Fayid with a forward location at Milayz in the early 1960s.

Egyptian historian Mohammed Heikal writes that Israel provided arms shipments and also cultivated relationships with hundreds of European mercenaries fighting for the Royalists in Yemen.

In response, the Saudis purchased British Thunderbird surface-to-air missiles and developed their King Khalid airfield near Khamis Mushait.

In Operation Hard Surface, President Kennedy sent jet fighters and bombers to Dhahran Air Base from May 1963,[13] demonstrating to Egypt the seriousness of his commitment to defending U.S. interests in Saudi Arabia.

The EAF's first air-to-air victory is claimed by MiG-21 pilot Nabil Shoukry against a Mirage IIICJ fighter over Inchas air base two hours following the first Israeli strike.

The Egyptian pilots flew aircraft procured by the Soviet Union, air force Mikoyan MiG-17 fighters and Ilyushin Il-28 bombers.

EAF aircraft were held in reserve after that point, mainly concentrating on airfield defence in conjunction with the SA-3 'Goa', while the more mobile SA-6 'Gainful' protected Egyptian forces at low and medium level, aided by the ZSU-23-4 and shoulder-held SA-7 SAMs.

The EAF claimed victories and continued to contest IAF operations, while also launching attacks on Israeli ground forces on the East Bank of the Suez Canal.

A 32-year-old deputy MiG-21 regiment commander who has been flying since he was 15 recalls: "During the war of attrition, the Israeli air force had a favorite ambush tactic", he told Aviation Week and Space Technology.

[27] During the Second Libyan Civil War there were conflicting reports that Egyptian warplanes bombed Islamist militias in support of the government based in Tobruk.

[29] Egyptian forces near the Libyan border have been put on high alert following airstrikes on Jan 10 from unidentified fighter jets inside Libya.

The fighter jets struck Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) targets inside Libya, according to news reports.

[33][34][35] The French nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is steaming through the Red Sea on its way to the Mediterranean via the Suez Canal for joint maneuvers with the Egyptian air force and navy in preparation for a reduced coalition offensive against Islamic State's deepening grip on Libya.

Within hours, the Egyptian Air Force responded with airstrikes against ISIL training camps and weapons stockpiles[37] in retaliation for the killings.

Egyptian Air Forces are participating in a Saudi-led joint regional military operation to halt the advance of Houthi rebels in Yemen,[42] Egypt's presidency announced on 2015 March 25 in a statement.

"EAF and paratroopers aerial supported Yemeni ground forces who have now seized the military base killing scores of Houthi rebels".

[46] Source:[47] Silver Stars is the Egyptian Air Force aerobatic display team flying 10 K-8E Karakorum jet trainer aircraft painted in white, red and black colors.

The Egyptian Air Force demonstration team "The Silver Stars" was formed in the mid of 1974 to participate at "October War" anniversary.

Pilots of the team were flying instructors at the Air force College and flew four L-29 planes painted in dark green and brown and yellow – standard color scheme.

Turkish Aerospace / TUSAS produced 46 F-16s for the Egyptian Air Force between 1993 and 1995 under the agreement signed between the Governments of Turkey and the Arab Republic of Egypt.

The Pentagon selected American International Contractors for a $66.6 million contract to upgrade infrastructure for Egypt's order of 20 F-16 Block 52 aircraft, estimated at $2.2 billion.

[58][59][60] In July 2015, the official ceremony, marking the acceptance by Egypt of its first 3 Rafales, was held at the Dassault Aviation flight test center in Istres.

The company also announced that the necessary equipment for the retooling and upgrading of the Helwan Factory aircraft repair plant had been prepared for shipment and that the Egyptian service technicians had completed training.

[100][101][102] In February 2015, MiG Director General Sergei Korotkov announced that the company was ready to supply the MiG-35 jets to Egypt should the country request them.

[106] In March 2019, it was reported that Egypt had reached an initial agreement with Russia for the sale of "over 20" Su-35 air superiority fighters in a deal valued at about US$2 billion.