New Delhi, May 30 (IANS) An India-built electronic sub-assembly will be part of the US Navy’s combat planes, a statement said Wednesday as Indian companies step up efforts to be part of the global defence supply chain.
The sub-assembly provides the cockpit flood lighting compatible with the aircraft’s night vision imaging system (NVIS).
American aerospace major Boeing has delivered the first EA-18G Growler aircraft fitted with a cockpit sub-assembly produced by Indian public sector defence electronics major Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) to the US Navy on May 3, a statement from the firm said.
Boeing has also extended a contract signed with BEL for another year for supplying the sub-assembly for Boeing military planes.
Boeing had awarded BEL an initial contract in March 2011 for work on F/A-18 Super Hornet combat plane cockpit sub-assemblies.
That contract included options to renew annually for up to four years. ‘As a result of BEL’s demonstrated performance, Boeing recently exercised an option to renew the contract for another year,’ it said.
‘BEL continues to demonstrate its capabilities and its position as a valued partner to Boeing,’ Boeing Defence, Space and Security in India vice-president for international business development Dennis Swanson said.
‘BEL’s work on P-8I, Super Hornets and Growlers is another example of how Indian companies are becoming a part of the global supply chain while Boeing helps them expand their opportunities across the global aerospace industry,’ he said.
Other EA-18G parts produced by BEL include a complex-machined stowage panel for the joint helmet mounted cueing system connector cable and an avionics cooling system fan test switch panel with an NVIS-compatible floodlight assembly.
Some of these cockpit sub assemblies also will be installed on Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets.
In addition to its F/A-18E/F and EA-18G work, BEL provides Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) interrogators and Data Link-II communications systems for the Indian Navy’s fleet of P-8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft.
India is buying 12 P-8I planes to boost its maritime domain awareness. The initial contract for eight of these planes were signed in January 2009.
Boeing and BEL also partnered to establish the analysis and experimentation centre in Bangalore in 2009.
The centre is a resource for collaboration, experimentation and discovery where the two companies work together to help the Indian armed forces understand the potential operational impacts of new system concepts, innovative technologies, and emerging and evolving processes.
