US seeks $30bn in defence contracts with India

[Neo]

February 06, 2007
US seeks $30bn in defence contracts with India

WASHINGTON, Feb 5: The United States hopes to get a major share of the $30 billion India plans to spend over the next five years for boosting its defence and is also hopeful of winning a coveted Indian contract for 126 fighter jets, US and Indian lobbyists said.

This week, the Washington-based US-India Business Council sent a large mission to India to participate in a defence show. The council emerged as the strongest Indian lobby in the United States during negotiations last year for the Indo-US nuclear deal.

William S. Cohen, former US Secretary of Defence under President Clinton and CEO of the Cohen Group and Ambassador Thomas R. Pickering of the Boeing Company are leading the US delegation to the Aero India 2007 show, which starts on Feb 7.

The 24-member delegation to Aero India 2007 hopes to win over several contracts for supplying military hardware to India. This will be the largest ever air show in India and will bring together the world’s leading producers of civilian and military aircraft and equipment.

The US delegation includes senior executives from the Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell, General Electric, Raytheon, the Cohen Group, United Technologies Corporation/Pratt & Whitney, Bell Helicopter Textron, Emergent Bio-Solutions, L-3 Communications, and the Fremont Group.

Many of these companies are displaying their equipment at the show. High-level meetings are scheduled with the government of India, including the Indian Ministry of Defence.

"We are convinced that the US has the most capable aircraft. We will expect to prevail", Mr Cohen told reporters in New Delhi on Monday when asked whether the US was confident of winning a lucrative Indian Air Force contract for buying 126 fighter jets.

"We are looking at increasing strategic partnership with India in not only aero space but across the entire spectrum of its defence sector. We would also like to set up our manufacturing base in India", he said.

India plans to announce soon a tender for purchasing 126 fighter aircrafts, estimated to cost nearly $10 billion, for which top of the line Russian, Swedish and French companies will also be competing.

"The competition will be fair. It all depends on how it turns out. We are convinced we have the best aircraft", Mr Cohen said. "We are looking at a $30 billion opportunity in defence sector in India over the next five years”.

Boeing has also offered to jointly produce the frontline F-18 Super Hornet in India if it wins the contract. The company will showcase the F/A-18f and C-17 transport aircraft and Chinook heavy lift chopper at the show. Lockheed Martin will display the cutting edge C-1130j and P-3c aircraft.

The United States recently also sold a warship — USS Trenton — to India. Officials in Washington, however, say that the enhanced US defence ties with India will not impact Washington’s defence relationship with Pakistan.

The US is the largest supply of military hardware to Pakistan and sold 36 new F-16s to Islamabad.

http://www.dawn.com/2007/02/06/top12.htm

 

[genmirajborgza786]

India to issue tender for 126 fighter jets by mid-2007 Tue Feb 6, 8:52 AM ET

BANGALORE, India (AFP) - India expects to float a tender by mid-2007 for 126 combat planes for its air force, a defence ministry official said, a contract coveted by the giants of military aerospace worldwide.

The defence ministry and the air force are putting the finishing touches to the so-called request for proposals which will specify India's requirements and seek bids from potential suppliers, K.P. Singh, the secretary for defence production, told reporters in Bangalore Tuesday.

"It's a large procurement so the people who are involved in the matter have to do a lot of work tying up various loose ends," Singh said before the start of the five-day Bangalore air show Wednesday.

"I'm sure that in the next six months something will happen."

The deal, which may be worth as much as nine billion dollars, has been in the pipeline since mid-2006 as India sought to replace the air force's ageing fleet of MiG-21s.

Warplanes in the running for the contract include the F-18 and F-16 aircraft made by Boeing and Lockheed Martin respectively, Russia's MiG-29 and the Gripen, made by Sweden's Saab.

The European defence and aircraft group EADS has also pitched its Eurofighter, and Dassault of France its fourth-generation Rafale.
India, which has an annual defence budget of about 20 billion dollars, is trying to boost the quality of its armed forces to a level commensurate with its status as an emerging economic powerhouse.
The country is the largest arms purchaser among emerging nations.
Indian defence planners wanted the tender to be floated, after sufficient preparation, so that it would be "a job well done," said Singh, the senior civil servant who oversees military production.
"You don't want to find that something has been missed out or something isn't there" when the tender is finally floated, he said.
India has insisted that overseas companies share contracts that are bigger than 60 million dollars with local partners, a requirement Singh doesn't see as a hurdle to the deal.
The government required foreign defence suppliers to plough 30 percent of the value of defence deals to Indian companies, a condition that took effect last year with a contract given to an Israeli manufacturer, Singh said.
Indian companies were "second to none" in software, he said, and the country had "great strength" in avionics, which make up about 50 percent of the cost of a fighter
plane.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070206/wl_sthasia_afp/indiamilitaryaviation_070206135247

 

[Neo]

We've been waiting for 8 years already, I guess six more months is no big deal.

 

[vnomad]

We've been waiting for 8 years already, I guess six more months is no big deal.

Two years actually. The RFIs(Request for Information) were sent out in 2004.

 

[Neo]

Two years actually. The RFIs(Request for Information) were sent out in 2004.

Thats correct, but the need for 126 MRCA was first expressed in 1998/99 after the LCA got sanctioned by the USA and other foreign experts.

Please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[vnomad]

Thats correct, but the need for 126 MRCA was first expressed in 1998/99 after the LCA got sanctioned by the USA and other foreign experts.

Please correct me if I'm wrong.

No you're absolutely right there. But, one doesn't count the delay from the time the requirement is envisioned. The IAF/defence ministry might have been deliberating over the requirement itself, instead of the aircraft.

 

[Janbaz]

We've been waiting for 8 years already, I guess six more months is no big deal.

Aren't they purchasing Mig-35. I am sure i read it.

 

[Introvert]

US offers F-16, F-18 to India​

ISLAMABAD: The United States has offered India high-tech F-16 and F-18 fighter planes on New Delhi’s request. This was disclosed by the air attache of the US embassy in India, Colonel Jaffrey A Paulk, in an exclusive interview with an Indian newsman in Bangalore on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Pakistan is contemplating to obtain Chinese-made most sophisticated Jiang-10 planes considered to be at par with any contemporary multi-role high-tech fighter plane of any country, including the American F-16.

Defence sources told The News here on Tuesday that India is planning to acquire nuclear-capable 126 most modern planes from the world market. The Indians are exploring Russian MIG-31, French Rafael and Mirages-2000, Swedish Grippens planes and four European countries (UK, Germany, France, and Italy) joint production Euro-fighters-Typhoon.

All these planes are expensive and available on cash payment. The Euro-fighter-Typhoon carries double price tag than F-16. In fact, India is planning to replace its decades-old MIG-21 and British made Jaguar plans, often termed ‘flying coffin’ by the aviators due to their alarming number of fatal accidents.

The sources disclosed on condition of anonymity that Pakistan is aware of the Indian designs but it would stick to its well-thought and considered defence policy. Pakistan is not in any race with India for acquiring the weapons in equal or more numbers. It will maintain its deterrent by keeping the level of weapons system that is required for its dependable defence, the sources added.

“Pakistan, without taking into consideration the amount of weapons being acquired by others, would not lower the minimum level of the weapons needed for its credible defence. However, India may not like to have F-16 since it has been eyeing on F-18, generally used by the navy but equally good for the ground operations”, the sources said.

“The US is ready to sell combat aircraft F-18 and F-16 to India along with weapon system and radars as per Indian needs”, disclosed by the Air AttachÈ in the US Embassy in India. He said that the request for a proposal has to come from India. He also said that the US is exhibiting both F-18 and F-16 in Aero-India 2007 that is taking place in Bangalore later this month.

Colonel Jeffrey A Paulk said, the US is bullish on India and the bilateral relations have improved dramatically after the visit of the US President to India and Indo-US civil nuclear agreement. The sources made it clear that Pakistan is mindful of the Indian desire but reserve its rights to react to the Indian efforts of piling the most dangerous weapon systems.

Sources also revealed that Pakistan would start getting supply of 18 planes of the latest version of US F-16 from next month. The test flights of first batch of F-16 Block 50/52 made for Pakistan have been initiated and the same would be on its way to Pakistan some time next month. The supply of the whole USD three billion package including 26 planes of embargoed version of A/B of F-16 will be completed in 2009. Pakistan also has an option to buy another batch of brand new F-16 Block 50/52 fitted with weapon system, but Islamabad still has to make up its mind in this regard, the sources added.

http://thenews.jang.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=5690