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WASHINGTON: US aerospace and defense industry executives said on Tuesday they were encouraged by a recent trade mission to India, a huge emerging market for commercial and military equipment in coming years.
The Aerospace Industries Association, which represents top U.S. defense and aerospace companies, said the trip included officials from five prime contractors including Lockheed Martin Corp., Raytheon Co., and United Technologies Corp., as well as 13 smaller suppliers.
Indian officials appeared increasingly open to the prospect of buying U.S. equipment, although they remained concerned about export control issues, Mark Esper, AIA executive vice president, told reporters.
Failure by the U.S. government to speed up licensing of exports could set back efforts to expand U.S.-Indian defense ties, he said. He said AIA was working closely with the Bush administration on the issue.
In addition, the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi had formed a working group to study the issue.
Varun Nikore, another top AIA official, said 86 percent of the 20 companies that participated in the trip, said they expected to sign a cooperation agreement or other partnership with an Indian company within the next year.
India is considering several high-profile weapons purchases, including the possible acquisition of six Lockheed C-130J cargo planes.
The Bush administration has also offered India a choice of two U.S. fighter aircraft — Lockheed's F-16 and the F-18 built by Boeing Co. — as entrants in a closely-watched multirole fighter competition.
President George W. Bush signed a law on Monday that represents a major step toward allowing India to buy U.S. nuclear fuel and reactors for the first time in 30 years.
Esper said that move had helped to reassure Indian officials that the United States would be a reliable partner. There was still some lingering skepticism from sanctions imposed by Washington after India's nuclear test in 1998.
The stakes in India are huge, the officials said, noting that Indian officials estimated the country would spend $10 billion per year on defense purchases for the next decade.
Matt Reagan, vice president of Industrial Metals International, one of the suppliers included in the trip, said U.S. companies were excited because the Indian market was “finally opening up to us.”
He acknowledged that procurements were historically slow-moving in India, but said the urgency of the needed modernization could speed things up.
