The air force is buying fifty Russian MiG-29MT fighters for $30 million each. The MiG-29 is roughly equivalent to the American F-16, and the Russians are selling them to the Algerians for about half what F-16s would cost. The MiG-29s will replace older Russian aircraft. The last Algerian purchase of Russian warplanes was in 1992, when 22 Su-24MK fighter-bombers were bought for a cut rate price of $5.5 million each.
