India's aerospace major Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Thursday said it has signed an agreement with the Argentine Air Force for providing spare parts, as well as assistance in repairing its fleet of helicopters that weigh around two tonnes.
"HAL signed a contract with the Argentine Air Force (AAF) for the supply of spares and engine repair of legacy two tonne-class helicopters," an HAL spokesman said.
Brigadier-General Xavier Isaac, Head of Argentina's Air Force, and CB Ananthakrishnan, chairman of HAL, signed the contract during the Aero India 2023 exhibition in Karnataka's capital city Bengaluru this week.
Brigadier-General Isaac said that the deal with HAL would go a long way to establishing close defense ties between the two nations.
Ananthakrishnan expressed confidence in HAL bagging more such contracts with Argentina's armed forces, adding that Indian exports of defense equipment and weapons platforms to Latin America would be boosted by this latest deal.
In addition to inking the spare parts agreement with HAL, Argentina is also keen on acquiring the LCA Tejas, considered one of the best in its class. A multi-role aircraft with a single engine, Tejas is one of the lightest supersonic fighter jets in the world.
Since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014, India has increased efforts towards being self-sufficient - the indigenisation - of defense supplies.
In January, Brahmos Airspace, a joint venture between India and Russia, signed a landmark $375Mln deal with the Philippines Navy, to sell three batteries of its anti-ship version. This was the first time any foreign country had signed a contract for the missiles produced by the New Delhi-headquartered defense firm.