At a virtual pre-Farnborough Air Show-2020 briefing, Boeing discussed its delivery of two F/A-18 Block-III Super Hornet flight test aircraft to the US Navy. Boeing is on schedule to deliver next-generation Block III capabilities to the US Navy in 2021. By 2024, one squadron per carrier air wing will consist of Block-III Super Hornets. The same Block-III aircraft that is being built for the US Navy is also on offer to the Indian Navy.
Thom Breckenridge, Vice President of International Sales for Strike, Surveillance and Mobility, Boeing Defence, Space & Security, said that the F/A-18 for the Indian Navy provides the best capability with the Block- III configuration, and benefits from the multi-billion dollar investments made towards new technologies in the Super Hornet by the US Navy and international customers. Additionally, the F/A-18 Super Hornet will provide superior value and tremendous opportunity to the Indian Navy. It can enhance collaboration in the areas of naval aviation between the Indian Navy and the US Navy to maintain peace and security throughout the Indo-Pacific region.
“The F/A-18 Super Hornet will enhance collaboration between the US Navy and Indian Navy in the Indian Ocean region,” said Breckenridge. “Boeing’s plan is to offer ‘By India, For India’ sustainment programme that will build on other successful sustainment programmes that Boeing is executing for the Indian Air Force and Indian Navy today, to sustain, modify and upgrade F/A-18 Super Hornet from India,” Breckenridge added.
This story is from the September 2020 edition of Geopolitics.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the September 2020 edition of Geopolitics.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
India's space economy set to soar
India's burgeoning space economy could see a substantial increase in its global share by 2040. At present, India's space sector contributes a modest $8 billion to the overall cake. However, the government has set its sights on an ambitious target, aiming for a five-fold surge in India's share of the global space economy.
CRITICAL NEED TO BOOST CONVENTIONAL SUBMARINE FLEET
VENUGOPAL MENON explains why India cannot afford to view the critical deficiency in Submarine force levels lightly
BEEFING UP OUR SUBMARINE FLEET
In the last week of March, the Indian Navy displayed its submarine prowess. Eight of its submarines operated together in the Western Indian Ocean Region, a first in three decades, and one of its Scorpene submarines sailed to the Andaman Nicobar Islands, overlooking the Malacca Strait, a critical choke point for China. But how is the comparison with China? RITU SHARMA reports
ENHANCING CRUISE MISSILE CAPABILITY
India’s cruise missile capability has largely evolved as a credible conventional level deterrence since the turn of the new millennium. But much more needs to be done, writes AMARTYA SINHA
BOOSTING DEFENCE EXPORTS
Earlier, India was known to be an arms importer. But today, the country has come out of its comfort zone and found a place in the list of top-25 arms exporter nations argues AMARTYA SINHA
ENHANCING INDIA'S AIRBORNE SURVEILLANCE CAPABILITIES
Project NETRA represents a proactive initiative by ISRO to safeguard India's interests in space by mitigating the risks posed by space debris and other hazards, says GIRISH LINGANNA
THE HIMALAYAN TRIANGLE: WHY INDIA KEEPS BHUTAN SAFE FROM CHINA
India, given its special relationship with Bhutan, has been very wary about the possibility of the establishment of diplomatic relations and the signing of a boundary agreement between Bhutan and China, writes SIMRAN SODHI
TROOST, DESAI AND SANCTIONS
The Western sanctions against companies and individuals doing business with Russia have produced a complex set of reactions with lobbyists and shell companies working overtime to beat the rap. A GEOPOLITICS Bureau report
THE KOREA-GATE
India attaches great importance to “three principles of inclusiveness, trust and reciprocity’” for creating the basis for working more closely with like-minded partners in the Indo-Pacific such as the Republic of Korea (ROK), better known as South Korea for “a free, peaceful and prosperous region”. Prakash Nanda dissects the relationship and the way ahead
Pushpak RLV-TD successfully lands autonomously
ISRO achieved another significant milestone in reusable launch vehicle (RLV) technology with the successful landing of Pushpak (RLV-TD), the winged vehicle, autonomously on the runway.