The Times of India
The Eurofighter, backed by UK, Germany, Spain and Italy, however, will find it difficult to fly back into the MMRCA project.
Oct 31, 2014
The Eurofighter, backed by UK, Germany, Spain and Italy, however, will find it difficult to fly back into the MMRCA project.
NEW DELHI: The Eurofighter Typhoon is eagerly waiting in the wings to fulfill India's requirements if the ongoing final negotiations for 126 French Rafale fighters fail for the almost $20 billion MMRCA (medium multi-role combat aircraft) project.
"We recognize the Indian government has put the French first in the MMRCA project. But we are still part of the competition. If the negotiations with France fail or stall, we are ready to step in," said visiting British defence secretary Michael Fallon, in an exclusive interview to TOI on Thursday afternoon.
The David Cameron government is "very enthused" about partnering the Modi government in its "Make in India" campaign in the defence technology and production sector. "We see a huge opportunity for the UK. It's a hugely exciting time in India, with the new government taking rapid decisions," said Fallon, who met defence minister Arun Jaitley earlier in the day.
The UK is also pushing for revival of the stalled $885 million deal for 145 M-777 ultra-light howitzers, which are manufactured by British multinational BAE Systems, between India and the US. It also wants India to soon ink the contract for 20 additional British Hawk advanced jet trainers (AJTs) as well as contemplate the lifting of the ban on AgustaWestland helicopters, which are enmeshed in the VVIP choppergate scandal.
The Eurofighter, backed by UK, Germany, Spain and Italy, however, will find it difficult to fly back into the MMRCA project.
Both Rafale and Typhoon had passed the extensive technical trials held by the IAF, while the American, Russian and Swedish jets were ejected out of the race.
In January 2012, Rafale was declared the winner or "L-1 (lowest bidder)" over the Eurofighter, even though the final negotiations since then have progressed at a glacial pace. The defence procurement policy as well as CVC guidelines do not provide for any "comebacks" in such a defence project.
Fallon, however, is hopeful. "We are ready and waiting for the follow-through after the Germans recently made an offer (a cheaper proposal for the Eurofighter) to the Indian government," he said.
The British defence secretary also pitched for "accelerated negotiations" in the long-pending deal for the M-777 howitzers, which the Indian government feels are too costly. BAE Systems has also "failed to come with a viable and compliant offsets package'' in what was supposed to be a government-to-government deal under the US foreign military sales (FMS) programme, as first reported by TOI.
Indicating that both the costs and offsets were negotiable, Fallon said, "We are pressing the M-777 case since the Indian Army is raising a new corps (the XVII Mountain Strike Corps with 90,000 troops for the China border). The guns are ideal for the new corps."
As a defence minister himself, Fallon said he knew India had to ensure it gets the "best value for money" for its taxpayers. "That has to be a key feature of any procurement. We are always also looking to improve the offsets offer," he said.
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