Britain on Wednesday said it had offered eight Sea Harrier aircraft to enable Indian Navy to maintain its naval fighter strength.
The offer was unveiled by visiting British Minister for Defence Procurement Lord Drayson who said the Sea Harriers will be from the inventory of the Royal Navy.
Talking to media persons, Lord Drayson said he was looking at close working relationships with Indian companies in defence sector and encourage their presence in UK.
Heading a high level British official delegation to the DefExpo 06, Lord Drayson said that the Typhoon Eurofighter will also be in contention for IAF's plans to acquire 126 multi-role combat aircraft. British companies were also offering its Merlin EH101 helicopters to augment IAF medium lift capability, he added.
On Typhoon, Drayson said the United Kingdom had not been informed when the initial Request for Information was floated. On Merlin helicopters, he said, "Negotiations with Indian Air Force officials were on. The IAF is proposing to purchase 80 medium lift helicopters as part of its move to augment its strategic lift capability."
Turning to Advanced Jet Trainers, he said, "Hawk AJTs will fly with the Indian Air Force later this year and the first batch will be delivered in few months time."
