Indian Security Committee approved the procurement of Boeing helicopters

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World Defense & Security News - India
 
 
 
Indian Security Committee approved the procurement of Boeing helicopters
 
The Indian Cabinet Committee on Security approved today the acquisition of Boeing attack and heavy-lift helicopters. The decision has put an end to a three-year delay and allows the expansion of the bilateral defence relations.
     
The Indian Cabinet Committee on Security approved today the acquisition of Boeing attack and heavy-lift helicopters. The decision has put an end to a three-year delay and allows the expansion of the bilateral defence relations. India will buy 22 Boeing AH-64E Apache Guardian
     
India will now buy 22 Boeing AH-64E attack and 15 heavy-lift Boeing CH-47F helicopters. The contract is worth USD2.5 billion, including the General Electric engines and the Hellfire missiles. If the options for 11 Apache and 7 Chinook are exercised the total value will reach at USD3 billion.

The delays in the procurement caused fears that the 2012 price would hike up to 40%, despite the efforts all these years to freeze it, according to Boeing’s president in India, Pratyush Kumar.

The decision comes ahead of the Indian Prime Minister’s visit to the US next Thursday. India has become the biggest single US arms importer during the last ten years. Its orders have exceeded the amount of USD10 billion and included major platforms such as the Boeing C-17 Globemaster, the LM C-130J Super Hercules and the Boeing P-8I Poseidon.