More than 86 per cent of US civil and military aerospace contractors including Boeing and Lockheed Martin are planning to form joint ventures with Indian aerospace companies this year, according to a survey.
The survey conducted by the Aerospace Industries Association, the main lobby group for the US aerospace industry comes just a week after AIA officials completed their first-ever trade mission to India between Dec 3-7, accompanied by executives from 13 US aerospace suppliers and several prime contractors including United Technologies corporation, Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Pratt and Whitney.
Quoting AIA officials, The Jane's Defence Weekly said the purpose of the mission was to help facilitate US defence sales and continue building the US commercial market in India - as part of a broader effort to improve the trading relationship and the overall strategic relationship between the two countries.
AIA officials said the US ability to gain entry into the Indian aerospace market will largely depend on the ability of US companies to follow through on their plans to form partnerships with small Indian businesses.
AIA officials said they will judge the success of their trade mission by whether or not US firms move ahead with those partnerships.
"With an emerging market like India, it's very important for us to recognise some opportunities knowing we're a little behind the curve," said Varun Nikore, director of supplier management for AIA.
"The French and Germans have already signed memorandums of agreement with key organisations in India."
The business partnerships with domestic Indian businesses are essential, AIA officials said, because India has relatively strict policies on accepting foreign defence contracts.
Indian companies must receive a slice of any major aerospace contracts and India's relatively stringent offset policy requires 30 per cent of the value of foreign defence contracts be offset by direct purchases, investments or transfer of technology to India, they said.
US businesses would gain from partnerships with small Indian companies because those companies are designated by the Indian Ministry of Defence to take on work as sub-contractors to India's state-owned defence giant, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, they added.
