Corporate America hails India's decision to buy 10 Boeing C17s

From Lalit K Jha
Washington, Jun 7 (PTI) Welcoming India's decision to
buy 10 Boeing C-17 heavy-lift aircraft for its Air Force,
US-India business body Tuesday said it is a testament to New
Delhi's confidence in having the US as its long-term defence
partner.
"This is testament to India's appreciation of US
technology and confidence in the US as a long-term defence
sales partner. This largest-ever Indian purchase of US defence
technology, we hope, will be just the beginning of much more
to come," said Ron Somers, president of US India Business
Council (USIBC) after Indian government took decision in this
regard.
Marking the biggest defence deal between India and the
US, India Monday gave green signal to procurement of 10
C-17 heavy-lift military aircraft at a cost of USD 4.1
billion, weeks after America lost out in the bid for 126
fighter deal.
Once delivered, Indian Air Force will be the owner and
operator of the largest C-17 fleet outside the US.
Headquartered in Chicago, Boeing is the manufacturer
of the C-17 aircraft. The C-17 is a large transport aircraft
used for rapid strategic and tactical airlift of tanks,
supplies and troops, as well as perform medical evacuations.
It can land on short and rough runways.
According to Boeing, each plane supports 650 suppliers
across 44 states in the US, and the order would support its
C-17 production facility in Long Beach in California for an
entire year. Boeing is the largest employer in the city.
"Without the order by the Indian government, the last
of the plant's current orders would be delivered in December
2012. The order has a USD 5.8 billion annual economic impact
and the jobs of about 25,000 workers in 44 states depend on
the C-17 planes," a Boeing spokesperson said.
The USD 4.1 billion transaction, all of which is US
export content, would support an estimated 22,160 jobs, the
USIBC said.
The deal comes with an offset requirement valued at
USD 1.2 billion. This offset is to facilitate India's domestic
capability to expand its own defence manufacturing prowess.
India's Cabinet Committee on Security has also approved the
future purchase of four additional C-17s, the body said.
"US defence sales to India began only a decade ago, at
a value of less than USD 200 million for radar equipment. We
have come a long way since then. US-India defense sales today
have now crossed the USD 9 billion mark and continue to grow,"
Somers said.
"US industry wishes to provide India with a host of
cutting-edge products and solutions to meet its emerging
defense, security, and counterterrorism needs. Overall, we see
the US and India, the world's largest free-market democracies,
forging a deep and lasting strategic partnership, shaping the
destiny of the 21st Century," he said.