Aerospace Diary

Neelam Mathews Nov 5 2015 Dubai Air Show (AIN) In 2013, Boeing placed its first CH-47 Chinook helicopter contract in India with Bangalore-based Dynamatic for aft-pylon and cargo ramp assemblies. India’s aerospace design and manufacturing industry is finally coming home to roost. Boeing (Stand 900) chairman James McNerney echoed confidence in the industry and the new government during a global summit, “India’s Time to Fly,” held in Delhi last month [October] when he announced that Boeing was “much closer to having final assembly [of] Apache or Chinook helicopters here.” McNerney added: “That will play out, and that is our strategy. Companies like Boeing are always on the lookout for competitive advantages that come with innovative new technologies and long-term partnerships.” He said India, with its broad, deep engineering capability and skilled workforce, was a natural partner “that offers us the long-term opportunities…” The statement came on the heels of India finalizi...

ROTORHUB 22nd September 2015 - 18:12 by  Neelam Mathews  in Delhi  India has cleared the procurement of 22  AH-64E Apache  attack helicopters and 15  CH-47F Chinook heavy lifters for the Indian Air Force.  The country’s Cabinet Committee of Security (CCS) approved the deal on the eve of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second visit to the US on 24 September and a contract is expected to be signed by November.  In June, India and the US signed a strategic ten-year defence framework pact envisaging joint development and manufacture of defence equipment and technology, including jet engines, and aircraft carrier design and construction. The $1.4 billion AH-64E proposal for India includes both a direct commercial sale (DCS) and a Foreign Military Sales (FMS) component. The FMS contract includes 50 In 2013, Boeing signed a MoU with..............Bangalore-based Dynamatic Technologies to manufacture aft pylon and .......Read more of Sh...

ROTORHUB 3rd November 2014 - 11:08 by  Neelam Mathews  in Delhi  The turmoil between the Indian Army Aviation Corps (AAC) and Air Force (IAF), locked in a spat for years over who will operate attack helicopters, is on the boil again. The tension was apparent at a ceremony marking the 60th anniversary of IAF rotary operations in New Delhi at the end of October, with the army making it clear it will yield control over attack helicopters. ‘In years to come, the IAF will be ensconced in strategic domain of air power and heavy lift, while the army will tend to the tactical needs of the environment… the domains are not in conflict but in concert,’ said Lt Gen PR Kumar, director general of military operations for the army. Though the Ministry of Defence assigned ownership, operation and maintenance of attack helicopters to the AAC in Nov 2012, the IAF continues to express its unwillingness to give up control, more so with the recent clearance of the offsets pr...

AINONLINE by    NEELAM MATHEWS The Boeing CH-47 is suited for India's austere environment and vast distances, the government believes. (Photo: Boeing) September 3, 2014, 9:27 AM India on August 29 approved industrial offset proposals to acquire 22 Boeing  AH -64E Apache attack helicopters and 15  CH -47F Chinook heavy lift helicopters for the Indian Air Force, a transaction valued at $2.5 billion. The country’s defense acquisition process requires that contracts in excess of $50 million require 30 percent offsets. Last year, Boeing signed a memorandum of understanding with Dynamatic Technologies of Bangalore to manufacture aft pylon and cargo ramp assemblies for the Chinook in anticipation of the larger agreement. The Indian government has declared manufacturing and export as priorities. The allowable limit for foreign direct investment in defense has been increased from 26 percent to 49 percent. The caveat that the ...

ROTORHUB 29th August 2014 - 18:14 by  Neelam Mathews  in New Delhi India has cleared the offsets proposal for 22 Boeing AH-64E Apache attack and 15 CH-47F Chinook heavy helicopters for the Indian Air Force.  The Defence Acquisitions Council, (DAC), headed by the defence minister, announced the move on August 29. The approval comes on the heels of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled to visit to the US on September 30.  It takes both deals closer to completion with clearances to be made by the finance ministry, which shares its minister with defence, and by the Cabinet Committee of Security. Meanwhile, the long pending, oft re-tendered, 197 Indian Army/Air Force Reconnaissance Surveillance Helicopter (RSH) bid for the Indian Army and Air Force, has been officially scrapped, ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Boeing, last year, signed a MoU with Bangalore-based ......................................

DH- Nov 2012 While India has acknowledged it needs to move rapidly to replace its elderly service helicopter fleets, government red tape and protests by losing bidders are holding up acquisition efforts, reports  Neelam Mathews. India’s plans for modernising its military aviation capabilities, including big-ticket deals such as the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft requirement for 126 jets, also have a substantial rotarywing component, with the objective being to induct more than 900 helicopters within the next decade. Demand for civil and military rotorcraft in India is projected to increase by an average of 6% annually, with a number of separate purchases being planned by the military, which recognises that acquisition needs to be done at a fast pace to replace a rapidly ageing fleet. The purchase of an RSH has been deferred by the Indian government, much to the fru...

India’s Procurement Policy Remains A Challenge FARNBOROUGH AIR SHOW  »  JULY 12, 2012 by    NEELAM MATHEWS July 11, 2012, 6:05 AM Boeing has expressed in no uncertain terms to  AIN  the pain of having to honor offsets in India and the challenge of managing a constantly shifting policy landscape. The growing Indian defense budget  ($44 billion by 2016) may be attractive but it would seem that the trials and tribulations being faced by initial winners such as Boeing could be a significant downside for the foreseeable future. “The biggest challenge is the defense procurement policy [ DPP ],” Christopher Chadwick, president of Boeing Military Aircraft, told  AIN . This is not just a Boeing challenge but an industry issue…The intentions of the Indian government that the Indian industry should grow, we support,…but the speed [of acquisition] cannot absorb the offsets.” Defense procurements in India call for an...

Neelam Mathews June 21, 2012 Orlando The Letter of Agreement for 22 Boeing Apache helicopters valued at $1.4 billion is expected to be signed by the end of this year, Aerospace Diary learns. India recently decided to reduce the field of competitors to award the attack helicopters to a single contractor- Boeing. The Russian Mi-28N Night Hunter and a version of the UH-1N Huey were dropped from the competition leaving the Boeing AH-64D Block III as only contender. The Government of India has requested  possibly for 50 T700-GE-701D engines, 12 AN/APG-78 Fire Control Radars, 12 AN/APR-48A Radar Frequency Interferometers, 812 AGM-114L-3 HELLFIRE LONGBOW missiles, 542 AGM-114R-3 HELLFIRE II missiles, 245 STINGER Block I-92H missiles, and 23 Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensors, rockets, training and dummy missiles, 30mm ammunition, transponders, simulators, global positioning system/inertial navigation systems, communication equipment, sp...

Neelam Mathews Oct 25, 2011 India is expected to purchase 22 attack helicopters - AH-64D Apache Longbow Block-III - from Boeing even as   Russia’s Mi-28 is said to have lost the bid, according to the Interfax news agency.  Indian defense ministry officials are said to have neither confirmed nor denied the report. “Both aircraft performed exceptionally well, but the American aircraft showed an advantage in key characteristics like the capacity to accept upgrades and multi-role operation,” said an official quoted by the Russian news agency.  If the Government of India selects the Apache, the Government of India will request a possible sale of 50 T700-GE-701D engines, 12 AN/APG-78 Fire Control Radars, 12 AN/APR-48A Radar Frequency Interferometers, 812 AGM-114L-3 HELLFIRE LONGBOW missiles, 542 AGM-114R-3 HELLFIRE II missiles, 245 STINGER Block I-92H missiles, and 23 Modernized Target Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot Night Vision Sensors, rockets, training...

News AWIN First Dec 28 , 2010 Neelam Mathews NEW DELHI The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) has notified Congress of a possible Foreign Military Sale of 22 AH-64D Block III Apache helicopters to India, along with related equipment and training. The complete package would be worth approximately $1.4 billion. The Indian government had requested proposals from several foreign suppliers, including Boeing, for 22 attack helicopters. The Indian Air Force has completed field trials for the Apaches to replace its Mi-26s. However, a final downselect has yet to be made; DSCA says it notified Congress of the potential sale “so that, in the event that the Boeing-U.S. Army proposal is selected, the United States might move as quickly as possible to implement the sale.” If Boeing wins the competition, India will request a direct commercial sale of 50 T700-GE-701D engines; 12 AN/APG-78 Fire Control Radars; 12 AN/APR-48A...