The US and India will complete their agreement to manufacture GE fighter jet engines before to PM Modi’s visit

In New Delhi, ABP Live has learned that the multi-billion dollar government-to-government deal between General Electric (GE) and the Indian government to produce fighter aircraft engines will be sealed during the arrival of US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin the following week. When Secretary Austin meets with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi, both nations are anticipated to finalise their plans to buy 30 MQ-9B armed drones from General Atomics. The ‘Air Information Sharing’ agreement’s early conclusion is also likely to be brought up, according to high-ranking government sources.

A unit of GE with headquarters in Ohio, GE Aerospace, has been debating plans to develop sophisticated jet engine technology in India for more than a year, according to insiders.

The contract will likely be revealed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the US next month, according to insiders.

From June 21 to June 24, Prime Minister Modi will go to the US on an official state visit. President Joe Biden will host him at the White House.

Following the discussions in Washington on the US-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET), the White House announced in January of this year that GE had submitted an application to jointly manufacture the engines in India. Ajit Doval, the national security adviser, and Jake Sullivan, his American counterpart, held the initial iCET meetings in Washington, D.C.

Under the government’s “Atmanirbhar” (self-reliance) plan, it is intended to produce GE’s F414 complicated jet engines in India to power the nation’s indigenous fighter jets, such as the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) TEJAS MK-2.

The MK-1 variant currently uses a GE F404 engine. India also intends to work with international manufacturers to create 114 multirole fighter fighters.

The US has also declared its willingness to cooperate fully with India in the transfer of jet engine technology. When Frank Kendall, Secretary of the US Air Force, visited India in March and met with NSA Doval and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, he made this announcement.

As the United States and India continue to modernise the U.S.-India Major Defence Partnership, Secretary Austin will go to New Delhi to meet with Rajnath Singh, the defence minister, and other leaders, according to a statement released by the Pentagon on Thursday.

It continued, “This visit provides an opportunity to accelerate new defence innovation and industrial cooperation initiatives and drive ongoing efforts to expand operational cooperation between the U.S. and Indian militaries.”

Unmanned aircraft weapons systems could be the subject of yet another agreement during this visit.

In an effort to bolster its presence and increase surveillance in sensitive Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China as well as in the maritime domain as the country increases presence of its military in the Indian Ocean region, India had expressed its intention to acquire these drones for all three services — Army, Navy, and Air Force.

Pact for Air Information Sharing

According to the sources cited above, India, which is also recognised by the US as a “Major Defence Partner,” is also in discussions with Washington to reach a “Air Information Sharing” agreement that will not only improve interoperability between the two countries’ air forces but also assist Washington in breaking into the Indian market for military aircraft.

This year during the Aero India Show, US aircraft dominated the Indian skies even as Washington displayed its military might by sending B-1B Lancer supersonic heavy bombers to Bangalore along with F-35 and F-16 fighter jets.

With an initial focus on projects related to jet engines, munition-related technologies, and other systems, both sides have decided to create a new bilateral Defence Industrial Cooperation Roadmap under the iCET in order to accelerate technological cooperation between both countries for the joint development and production.

The Panagarh Air Force Base in West Bengal, as well as the Air Force bases at Kalaikunda and Agra, hosted the joint exercise Cope India-23 last month. This time around, the US sent out B1B bombers and F-15s, while India sent out C-130 Js, Rafale, Sukhoi, and TEJAS.