Boeing is ramping up
its efforts to win a bigger share of the billions India spends on military
hardware.
The aviation giant has
announced it's setting up a new unit that will handle all its defense
operations in the country. It will focus on building up a manufacturing
and engineering base in addition to other services, the company said.
India will be only the
fourth country outside the U.S. where Boeing (BA) has a dedicated defense arm. The others are in the U.K.,
Australia and Saudi Arabia.
India is on a weapons
spending spree, shelling out more than $50 billion on military equipment last
year. That's already more than Russia -- and India is projected to overtake the
U.K. as the world's third largest defense buyer by 2018, according to IHS Jane's.
Boeing has been
aggressively expanding into the Indian market. The U.S. manufacturer announced an $11 billion deal last month to supply 100 new 737 Max 8
commercial aircraft to budget airline Spicejet.
With India also shopping
for new fighter jets, Boeing is showing that it's ready to compete with the
likes of Lockheed Martin (LMT) and Swedish firm Saab -- both of
which have offered to manufacture their combat aircraft in India. Lockheed
has even said it's willing to make the South Asian country a global
manufacturing hub for its F-16 jets.
Boeing already supplies
several military aircraft to India, including C-17 supply planes and its Apache
and Chinook helicopters. It has also pitched its own fighter -- the F/A 18
Super Hornet -- to the Indian navy, a company representative told CNNMoney, and
would potentially make them in the country if it wins the contract.
The company appears
eager to align itself with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in
India' program, aimed at boosting local manufacturing.
"We are making the
changes necessary to position ourselves for future growth ... and accelerate
our efforts to achieve the country's 'Make in India' vision," Leanne
Caret, the company's head of defense, space and security, said in a statement.
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