Sikorsky close to landing $2.1 billion India helicopter contract
A key government committee in India signed off on a $2.1 billion purchase agreement to acquire two dozen naval helicopters manufactured by Sikorsky, with the deal having yet to be finalized.
An initial outline for an agreement was reached in 2018, with India publications citing a Ministry of Defense official last week who indicated a security committee had given its final approval in advance of President Donald Trump’s visit this week to India.
India wants 24 Sikorsky MH-60R helicopters powered with engines from the GE Aviation subsidiary of General Electric. The Seahawk variants would replace more than 30 Sea King helicopters built or licensed by Sikorsky, part of India’s total fleet of 185 helicopters, according to FlightGlobal.com, excluding training aircraft.
It is an open question on how much work from any India contract would flow through to Sikorsky’s main plant in Stratford and satellite offices in Shelton and Bridgeport, which with more than 7,600 employees make Sikorsky and parent Lockheed Martin the largest corporate employer in western Connecticut.
Aviation and defense are two industries subject to “Make in India” rules established in 2014, under which India requires some domestic manufacturing work for major purchases by its government. Separately more than a decade ago under former parent United Technologies, Sikorsky teamed with the Mumbai-based conglomerate Tata Group to produce cabins in India for its big S-92 helicopters.
Prior to Lockheed Martin acquiring Sikorsky in 2016 from UTC, Sikorsky won a contract to deliver more than 100 utility helicopters to Turkey, agreeing to help the country establish a major manufacturing and assembly facility there. Earlier this month, however, Lockheed Martin warned that remaining work on that contract could be in jeopardy after the Trump administration slapped sanctions on the Turkish government over the purchase of missile systems from Russia.
Regardless of India’s ultimate decision on manufacturing, much of the precision work occurs in Stratford that goes into sophisticated aircraft like the Seahawk, as well as at a Lockheed Martin facility in Owego, N.Y. that focuses on electronic mission systems.
Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin are currently gearing up for full production of the CH-53K helicopter for the Marine Corps, the largest ever deployed by the U.S. military with the Pentagon planning to purchase more than 200 aircraft over the span of a decade.
