Indo-US Defence Cooperation Growing in Strength
Underscores Boeing’s Partnership with India
Today, the backbone of India’s strategic and theatre transport fleet, its heavy attack and heavy lift helicopter capability, its long-range maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare aircraft capability – is all US-origin. What’s more, major fighter aircraft offerings and services opportunities are being actively discussed that could further advance the bilateral security agenda and realise the value of both countries being Major Defence Partner.
As one of the fastest growing economies in the world, India offers tremendous growth and productivity opportunities for the aerospace industry. There is an extraordinary potential for defence trade and partnerships to grow further between India and the US. The bilateral defence cooperation has evolved considerably in the last few years, driven by the growing convergence of American and Indian defence interests.
If we start with a quick look at the last five years, Boeing has accelerated growth in India with a razor-sharp focus on the key areas of:
Customer engagement – meeting the Indian Navy (IN) and Indian Air Force’s (IAF) modernisation and mission-readiness needs
Services growth – localisation of our services, and the value Boeing Defence India, our local establishment in India, is able to provide through the lifecycle of platforms offered
Supplier expansion – building an indigenous and robust supplier-partner network with a focus on Aatmanirbhar Bharat
We are committed to supporting the modernisation and mission-readiness of India’s defence forces through strategic investments in manufacturing, skill development and engineering. Today, India operates 11 C-17s, 22 AH-64 Apaches (with
six more on order), 15 CH-47 Chinooks, 12 P-8Is, 3 VVIP aircraft (737 airframe) and two Head of State aircraft (777 airframe), all Boeing platforms. With more than 275 suppliers in India, we continue to explore areas for an Aatmanirbhar Bharat and adding more value to India’s aerospace and defence ecosystem.
We are seeing growth in our services business and, with it, growth in the value Boeing creates through product lifecycle support and training. From performancebased logistics contracting and integrated fleet support to maintenance, modifications and repairs, Boeing provides a broad spectrum of innovative products and services across platforms which directly support and enhance capabilities while reducing total cost of ownership for our customers globally. Boeing’s investments in services infrastructure, building local capabilities, workforce training and partnerships in India are aimed at ensuring the Indian armed forces successfully complete their missions, operate their assets at peak condition and do so affordably.
In 2021, we launched the Boeing India Repair Development and Sustainment (BIRDS) Hub. BIRDS is an initiative to bring together ecosystem partners to shape India as a strategic destination for aerospace engineering, maintenance, repair and sustainment services. This is a one of its kind initiative that seeks to provide customers with best-in-class solutions, efficient turnaround times, and optimal economical value, all available in-country. Partnership is Boeing’s key to success and we believe it makes more sense to partner with local MROs that are already established and have great capabilities. We bring specific trainings to their employees as required per the scope of work. One such example is Air Works in Hosur who we work with for the heavy checks on the P-8I fleet. Likewise, we are constantly on the look-out to do more here. While we are already doing P-8I wheels and brakes in-country, we are now examining local MROs for their ability to do P-8I landing gear overhaul, and even engines.
Our focus is also to help build a strong indigenous Indian aerospace and defence ecosystem, and invest in partnerships and talent to contribute to the vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat. This will shape the next five years for us. Boeing’s sourcing from India has steadily grown over the years and is today worth $1 billion annually. Our Indian suppliers manufacture critical systems and components that go into some of Boeing’s most advanced aircraft. In 2021 alone, we added new suppliers including several Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), as part of our commitment to Aatmanirbhar Bharat. Last year our joint venture, Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited (TBAL) in Hyderabad, also delivered the 100th fuselage for the Apache attack helicopter.
A future blueprint for partnership
The future looks promising and we continue to see several opportunities in India. India’s defence sector is poised for growth and Boeing is committed to supporting and enabling this progress.
We’re engaging with our defence customers in India on their current and future requirements for national security and regularly engage in discussions over the value our portfolio can deliver to develop capabilities they require for the execution of their missions. In the near-term, those capabilities include the F/A-18 Super Hornet and additional P-8Is for the Indian Navy, the F-15EX and KC-46, the aerial refuellers for the IAF, additional training, sustainment and performance based logistics solutions.
The F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III will be a transformative capability for the Indian Navy for their requirement of Multi-Role Carrier Borne Fighter. With the Super Hornet, the IN will get the most advanced and lethal platform while benefiting from the tactics, upgrades and knowledge related to the US naval aviation ecosystem. The Block III configuration is suited to protect India’s maritime interests as it’s built to meet the broadest range of missions while benefiting from the upgrades and knowledge related to US naval aviation. We anticipate the Super Hornet opening up opportunities for greater interoperability between the two navies for a secure Indo-Pacific.
Boeing has conducted several studies over the last couple of years, including the ski-jump tests at USN facility in Patuxent River that demonstrate that the F/A-18 Super Hornet is fully compatible with IN carriers. The F/A-18 Super Hornet was specifically designed, from its inception, for carrier operations. Another important fact to note is that the two-seater carrier compatible variant of the Super Hornet offers several unique advantages to the IN.
Talking of those advantages – one, the twoseater can help impart carrier qualification training onboard the carrier rather than just ashore making pilot conversion much safer; two, given that the two-seaters can operate from aboard the carrier for combat roles, this would make the entire inventory available to the IN onboard their carrier(s) rather than the two-seaters just sitting ashore in the hangars when the carrier sails to address a crisis.
We are also engaged with the IAF on their requirement for Multi-Role Fighter Aircraft (MRFA). The F-15EX will excel as a candidate in India’s MRFA programme. Given the contemporary sensors and radar, advanced cockpit, range, endurance, speed and payload capacity, the F-15EX brings capabilities that no other fighter aircraft can offer.
As the IAF further shapes its defence capabilities, the KC-46 is the perfect choice for a multi-role tanker-transport aircraft for appropriate mid-air refueling capability. The new KC-46 is designed from the ground-up to be a combat-ready tanker. We also believe that the IAF has requirements for more Chinooks and we stand ready to support them. In early 2020, the Ministry of Defence had also signed a contract for the acquisition of an additional six Apaches for the Indian Army. We believe that the Indian Army will have further requirement for Apaches, and we are ready to support them for their future needs.
We are contributing to the growth of India’s aerospace industry; that’s why we are investing in partnerships across the ecosystem in skilling, research and development, and manufacturing. India is front and center of significant opportunities for Boeing and the country’s role in our global supply chain is big and getting bigger. Our commitment to India is deep and it’s for the long term; our vision is to bring the best of Boeing to India and export the best of India to the world!