NEW DELHI: The US has welcomed India’s impending $3.9 billion procurement of 31 armed MQ-9B ‘hunter-killer’ predator drones, as part of their overall defence partnership that will see the two countries further ramp up military interoperability, intelligence-sharing, space and cyber cooperation as well as defence-industrial and innovation collaboration, with an eye firmly on China’s aggressive behaviour in the Indo-Pacific.
The govt-to-govt deal for the 31 high-altitude long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), with 15 Sea Guardian drones earmarked for Navy and eight Sky Guardians each for Army and IAF, is set to be inked in mid-Oct after the two sides wrapped up the techno-commercial negotiations, as was earlier reported by TOI.
“President Joe Biden welcomed the progress towards India concluding procurement of 31 General Atomics MQ-9Bs and their associated equipment, which will enhance the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities of India’s armed forces across all domains.” a joint fact-sheet issued after the Modi-Biden talks said.
The drone deal will take the collective worth of lucrative Indian defence contracts bagged by the US to well over $25 billion just since 2007. Instead of such direct acquisitions, India is now pushing for co-development and co-production of advanced weapon systems under the ambitious defence-industrial cooperation roadmap finalised in June last year.
While no such joint project has been sealed till now, Modi and Biden “recognised the remarkable progress” achieved under the roadmap, including “ongoing collaboration to advance priority co-production arrangements for jet engines, munitions, and ground mobility systems”.
India and the US are also conducting techno-commercial negotiations to jointly produce GE-F414 jet engines for the Tejas Mark-2 fighters here, with 80% transfer of technology for around $1 billion.
The two leaders also welcomed efforts to expand other defence-industrial partnerships, including for the co-development and co-production of unmanned surface vehicle systems to strengthen undersea and maritime domain awareness, as well as enhance India’s MRO (maintenance, repair, overhaul) capabilities for the repair of aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Modi and Biden also lauded ongoing efforts to deepen the bilateral military partnership and interoperability to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific, noting that India hosted the largest and most complex bilateral tri-Service exercise ‘Tiger Triumph’ till date in March.
The govt-to-govt deal for the 31 high-altitude long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), with 15 Sea Guardian drones earmarked for Navy and eight Sky Guardians each for Army and IAF, is set to be inked in mid-Oct after the two sides wrapped up the techno-commercial negotiations, as was earlier reported by TOI.
“President Joe Biden welcomed the progress towards India concluding procurement of 31 General Atomics MQ-9Bs and their associated equipment, which will enhance the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities of India’s armed forces across all domains.” a joint fact-sheet issued after the Modi-Biden talks said.
The drone deal will take the collective worth of lucrative Indian defence contracts bagged by the US to well over $25 billion just since 2007. Instead of such direct acquisitions, India is now pushing for co-development and co-production of advanced weapon systems under the ambitious defence-industrial cooperation roadmap finalised in June last year.
While no such joint project has been sealed till now, Modi and Biden “recognised the remarkable progress” achieved under the roadmap, including “ongoing collaboration to advance priority co-production arrangements for jet engines, munitions, and ground mobility systems”.
India and the US are also conducting techno-commercial negotiations to jointly produce GE-F414 jet engines for the Tejas Mark-2 fighters here, with 80% transfer of technology for around $1 billion.
The two leaders also welcomed efforts to expand other defence-industrial partnerships, including for the co-development and co-production of unmanned surface vehicle systems to strengthen undersea and maritime domain awareness, as well as enhance India’s MRO (maintenance, repair, overhaul) capabilities for the repair of aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Modi and Biden also lauded ongoing efforts to deepen the bilateral military partnership and interoperability to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific, noting that India hosted the largest and most complex bilateral tri-Service exercise ‘Tiger Triumph’ till date in March.
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