This is India’s biggest ever defence deal with the US. According to reports, the deal was signed on January 1 by Preeti Sudan, Indian Defence Ministry’s Joint Secretary and and Boeing integrated defence systems vice-president and country head Vivek Lall.

The P-8 is a modification of the P-8A Poseidon Multi-Mission Maritime Aircraft currently being developed for US Navy. It is a tailored version for the Indian Navy.

The aircraft will bolster Indian Navy’s maritime patrolling capabilities and extend its reach upto 600 nautical miles. It is fitted with weapons like torpedoes, depth bombs and anti-ship missiles.

The Indian Navy currently has eight Russian Tupolev-142M Turboprops.

The first P-81 is expected to be delivered by 2012-end or early-2013. The rest will be delivered by 2016.

In November 2006, the Indian Navy had expressed an interest in the aircraft as a replacement for its existing fleet of IL-38 aircraft that are nearing the end of their service life.

The Committee headed by Sheikh Aftab Ahmad visited the PAC and was given detailed briefing about the ongoing projects being undertaken by the prestigious organisation in the defence production sector.

The Chairman PAC Air Marshal Khalid Chaudhry gave detailed briefing about the projects whereby informing that the PAC has set up the factory for initiating the serial production of JF-17 Thunder aircraft.

He said PAC has the capability to manufacture 75 % avionics and 58 % of airframe of the modern fighter aircraft.

About other project being carried out by PAC, he said PAC had been overhauling around 180 engines of various fighter jets and 60 aircraft a year. As during the last three years, since he joined as Chairman of PAC, around 160 aircraft and some 580 engines of the aircraft have been overhauled.

He also informed that the Mirage Rebuild Factory, which is a part of PAC has been rebuilding 35 years old version of the Mirage aircraft which were bought as scrap from various countries.

In the avionics sector he said state-of-the-art machinery recently imported from various developed countries has been installed to manufacture various gadgets for different versions of the aircraft in the inventory of Pakistan Airforce.