New Delhi: Leading American company Boeing is showcasing a wide range of defence capabilities at the five-day DefExpo 2022 beginning in Gandhinagar from October 18, highlighting its commitment to India’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision.
“India’s defence sector is poised for growth and offers significant opportunities for Boeing with our proven portfolio of products and services, offering unmatched operational capabilities to India’s defence forces across the entire mission spectrum and through their product lifecycle,” said Salil Gupte, President, Boeing India.
“Boeing is committed to supporting and enabling this progress with a vision to be to bring the best of Boeing to India and take the best of India to the world,” he added.
Boeing DefExpo 2022 exhibit, which goes by the theme “By India, For India” highlights the company’s strategic investments made in India’s aerospace and defence ecosystem to build services, local infrastructure, capabilities, workforce development and partnerships.
The company is showcasing its highly successful ongoing defence programmes with the Indian Navy and Indian Air Force, such as the C-17, P-8I, AH-64E Apache, and CH-47F Chinook, and outline sustainment, training, and performance-based logistics solutions for India’s armed forces to support the lifecycle of their fleets and increase mission readiness.
Boeing, which is offering the F/A-18 Super Hornet for an Indian Navy carrier-borne fighter requirement for 56 aircraft, recently announced a potential economic impact of US$3.6 billion over ten years to the Indian economy if the aircraft were selected with the company committing to continued investments in manufacturing, engineering & technology transfer, sustainment, training and skilling and infrastructure. The economic impact would exceed the company’s current offset obligations and plans in the country.
Boeing is showcasing the advanced capabilities of the F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III and F-15EX (on offer to the IAF). It is positioning the advanced multi-role capabilities of the F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III as the best choice to meet the Indian Navy’s carrier-borne fighter jet requirement. Visitors will be able to fly the F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III on a simulator and learn more about its ability to conduct a wide range of missions, carrier-based aviation, and superior capabilities.
“Boeing continues to partner closely with customers and local industry to support the defence modernisation of India’s armed forces,” said Alain Garcia, Vice President of Boeing Defence, Space & Security in India.
“With our keen focus on sustaining, training, localisation, and partnerships, we are committed to supporting India’s existing and future defence requirements. We look forward to being at DefExpo and advancing those discussions.”
India presently operates 11 C-17s, 22 AH-64 Apaches (with six more on order), 15 CH-47 Chinooks, 12 P-8Is, three VVIP aircraft and two Head of State aircraft. In addition, Boeing is steadily increasing its sourcing from India and expanding its supplier network of more than 300 supplier partners. It also has a joint venture with Tata Group to manufacture fuselages for Apache helicopters. The company’s annual sourcing from India stands at US$1 billion, and it currently employs close to 4,000 people in India, and more than 7,000 people work with its supply chain partners.
