Article Posted on : - May 31, 2012

EA-18G Growler. A Boeing photo.

NEW DELHI (PTI): US aircraft major Boeing has delivered an electronic warfare combat plane to the US Navy fitted with Indian equipment manufactured by defence PSU Bharat Electronics Limited.

The Boeing-made EA-18G Growler--a variant of the F-18 fighter aircraft--was delivered to the US Navy with a "BEL-produced cockpit sub-assembly which provides cockpit floodlighting compatible with the aircraft's night vision imaging system (NVIS)," the company said in a release.

The contract to BEL in this regard was awarded by Boeing in March 2011 for working on sub assemblies of F/A-18 Super Hornet cockpit.

"That contract included options to renew annually for up to four years. As a result of BEL's demonstrated performance, Boeing recently exercised an option to renew the contract for another year," the release said.

Commenting on the development, Boeing India Vice President Dennis Swanson said, "BEL's work on P-8I, Super Hornets and Growlers is another example of how Indian companies are becoming a part of the global supply chain while Boeing helps them expand their opportunities across the global aerospace industry."

BEL has produced other parts also for the EA-18 Growler which include a complex-machined stowage panel for the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System connector cable and an avionics cooling system fan test switch panel with an NVIS-compatible floodlight assembly.

BEL has also provided 'Identification Friend or Foe' interrogators and communications systems for the Indian Navy's fleet of P-8I maritime reconnaissance aircraft.