Cairo, October 21 – On October 18, 2026, two Egyptian Air Force C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft, registered SU-BAI and SU-BEW, entered Saudi Arabian airspace according to Flightradar24 tracking data. The aircraft appeared near Jeddah in the morning hours before their signals disappeared inland, with one reappearing later northwest of Medina and near Al-Wajh. This movement coincided with Egypt’s National Defense Council, chaired by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, approving all necessary and possible support to defend Saudi Arabia amid escalating Houthi attacks linked to the Yemen conflict.
Open-source intelligence accounts, notably @MenchOsint, reported that the Egyptian C-130s landed at King Fahd Air Base in Taif, with one later departing. Several outlets amplified this as evidence of an initial troop deployment. Public flight-tracking data confirmed the aircraft in Saudi airspace but did not independently verify specific landing sites, as military flights commonly switch off transponders. No official Egyptian or Saudi statements confirmed the landings or any troop movements at the time.
Egypt’s parliament was still reviewing authorization for potential defensive troop deployment, with a vote postponed beyond the October 18 date. Analysts noted that similar Egyptian military transport aircraft flights to Saudi Arabia had occurred repeatedly in prior months as routine logistical support, separate from any formal large-scale deployment requiring parliamentary approval.
False allegations spread rapidly on social media, including viral videos claiming to show Egyptian troops boarding C-130 aircraft for immediate deployment to Saudi Arabia. CNN Arabic fact-checked these clips and determined they were old footage unrelated to October 2026 events. Claims framing the tracked flights as a confirmed and completed troop deployment overstated the available evidence, which remains limited to verified airspace presence without independent confirmation of purpose or ground activity.