A K9A1 Thunder self-propelled howitzer on display at the EDEX show held in Cairo from 29 November to 2 December 2021. (Hanwha Defense)
The Egyptian military is considering acquiring 155 mm K9 Thunder tracked self-propelled howitzers (SPHs) and support vehicles, South Korea's Hanwha Defense announced during the EDEX show held in Cairo on 30 November.
While it revealed no further details of the possible deal, on the same day South Korea's Yonhap news agency cited defence industry officials as saying it would include K10 ammunition resupply vehicles and technology transfer to enable local production of the artillery system.
South Korea has previously transferred technology to Turkey so it can produce its T-155 Fırtına variant of the K9.
If the deal is finalised, Egypt will be first Arab country to order the K9, which has already been exported to several European countries and India.
A photograph of a K9 purportedly taken in Egypt in mid-2017 prompted speculation that the howitzer was being trialled as part of a wider competition that included the French CAESAR wheeled SPH, which was also photographed in Egypt around that time.
The Egyptian Army's main tracked self-propelled howitzers are currently the M109 series (including more than 170 M109A5s received in 2006–08) and the SPH-122. The latter is essentially the hull of an M109 with an Egyptian-made 122 mm D-30 gun in a superstructure rather than a traversable turret.
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