The Moroccan Airforce held a ceremony at Sale Air Base near Rabat, on March 5 2025 welcoming the first batch of purchased AH-64E Apache helicopters, this marks the first 'official' delivery of the helicopters to The kingdom since it has already received unknown number of AH-64E Apache helicopters earlier this year.
Reportedly the purchase includes 24 AH-64E Apache helicopters and 12 additional aircraft, spare parts, and maintenance services. This deal is part of a bigger plan that intends to Upgrade and modernise the Moroccan Royal Air Force, by acquiring other military aviation assets from the U.S. like 25 F-16C/D Block 72 fighter jets to replace F5 Tigers and Mirage F1 fighter jets.
According to a press notice released by U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs, the Purchase deal announced in 2020 is part of an initiative made by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA).
“The United States and Morocco have a long history of partnership reaching back nearly 250 years when Morocco was the first to recognize U.S. independence,”
U.S. Charge d’Affaires Aimee Cutrona
First introduced in 2012, the AH-64E is an upgraded version of its predecessors, offering advanced capabilities such as enhanced digital connectivity, more powerful engines, the ability to control unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), full instrument flight rules (IFR) capability, and improved landing gear. The helicopter can achieve speeds of up to 150 knots (278 km/h) and has an operational range exceeding 450 km.
“The Apache helicopter, especially this model, brings advanced weaponry in reconnaissance and attack, enabling the Royal Moroccan Air Force (RMAF) to better secure their borders to deter and defeat terrorism in the region,”
U.S. Army Lt. Col. James Anderson, Chief of the Office of Security Cooperation, Rabat.
Additionally, 24 Moroccan Royal Air Force pilots were trained by The Utah National Guard alongside five instructor pilots with three more expected soon. making the whole Squadron sufficient in terms of pilots after six months.