New Delhi: After the India Air Force planning to buy 110 fighter jets in a deal that could be worth more than USD 15 billion, Lockheed Martin has said that it is ready for F-16 fighter aircraft manufacturing unit to India and it would be allowed by the US government, according to the company.
Apart from that, the American global aerospace and defence giant is also preparing to transfer the technology of its third generation anti-armour Javelin guided missile system to India to manufacture in the future.
Not less than two Lockheed officials at the DefExpo18 told the news agency that the defence procurement deals were signed with the company that is all ready to bid for the world’s biggest fighter jet order and it would walk the needed extra mile and transfer technology to local partners for sophisticated parts of defense products.
“We are offering a deal that is completely compatible with ‘Make in India’; offering a stand-up production line in India,” said Randall L. Howard, who heads International Business Development for aircraft at Lockheed Martin Aeronautics.
He said that over 4,000 F-16S have already been sold to many countries across the world. “We are offering to shift the manufacturing base and produce all of our F-16s in India; not just for India, but for the whole world, across South East Asia, across South America, across Middle East.”
When asked about the Trump administration permitting the transfer, Mr Howard said that the company had “full support of the US government”.
He spoke about the single-engine supersonic multi-role fighter aircraft that was in action in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars and was currently being built around the world and if it were set up in India, the US jobs will not feel the impact.
“So whenever we have a situation, we will be able to build the entire aircraft in India. But we will continue to have parts that come from the US. That will continue to create jobs in the US. This absolutely supports American jobs,” he said, adding Lockheed was also looking at the possibility of setting up the entire ecosystem related to it, including one with a runway, to be able to produce the fighters in flyaway condition.
Another Lockheed officer, Haley Donoho, who is business development head of the shoulder-fired anti-armour Javelin missile, said a possible joint venture for the system “is in good standing with the Indian government”.
“Should the Indian government be interested in the third generation missile system, we are ready to sell Javelin under a foreign military sale contract which is the most transparent acquisition contract you can find. You can trace at every step where the money is going.”
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