F 16 production will make India export hub |
Lockheed Martin said its proposal to manufacture custom-built F-16 fighter jets in India will make the country an export hub and give it access to an estimated $165 billion fighter aircraft market over the next few decades. Eyeing India`s lucrative defence market, the American aerospace major said F-16 production would place India at the centre of the world`s largest fighter aircraft ecosystem, creating "unmatched" Make in India opportunities and export potential. Vivek Lall of Lockheed Martin said F-16 Block 70 being proposed to India will be the most technologically advanced and capable F-16 fighter jet ever produced. F-16 exports could begin within five years of establishing production in India. Depending on when India makes its selection, more than 200 F-16s could be exported from India, Lall told PTI. The F-16 Block 70, he said, brings the most modern avionics, a proven Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, a modernised cockpit, advanced weapons, longer range with conformal fuel tanks, the Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto GCAS) and an advanced engine with an extended service life. Block 70 mission systems are completely new and leverage technologies from the F-35.
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