India
and US inked contract for six additional C-130J super Hercules aircraft, worth
of 1.01 billion dollars on 27 December 2013.
Defence Ministry announced that the six C-130J
will be delivered within 3 years as it was signed under the US government’s
foreign military sales (FMS) programme. The rugged
C-130, as the bigger C-17 Globemaster-III strategic airlift aircraft acquired
from the US, these can land at a small forward airbase on a semi-prepared
runway. Already Indian Air Force (IAF) landed a C-130J
on the Daulat Beg Oldi airstrip in eastern Ladakh, at an altitude of 16614
feet, just seven kilometer from LAC in
August 2013. C-130j ordered for 962 million dollar in
2007. It is crucial to counter China’s massive build-up of border
infrastructure. The six new C-130Js is configured for special operations and
will be based at Panagarh in West Bengal.
The US already had deals, worth of
10 billion dollar over the last
decade in the Indian defence market. The
other deals are the ones for 15 Chinook heavy-lift choppers, 22 Apache attack
helicopters, four P-81 maritime patrol aircraft and 145 M-777 ultra-light
howitzers together worth of 4 billion dollar.
The contract
negotiation committee (CNC) for the Chinooks has completed its work and one for
the Apaches is on the verge of finalization informed by the Ministry of Defence. The C-130J Super
Hercules is an update version of Lockheed C-130 Hercules, which is capable of
using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings.