New Delhi, July 27

India today inked a deal with the US defence and aerospace giant Boeing to procure four more P-8I submarine hunter planes worth $1 billion.The Navy has already purchased eight P-8Is for $2.1 billion and deployed some of these in Andaman and Nicobar islands near the busy shipping route passing through the Malacca Straits.The P-8I, classified as a long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, is based on the body of Boeing’s 737-800 commercial aircraft. It is the Navy variant of the P-8A Poseidon that Boeing has developed for the US Navy. It has a range of 4,500 nautical miles.  The Navy’s anti-submarine and surface warfare capabilities will be augmented once the planes join the fleet. — TNS

Tab on China

• The acquisition of additional P-8Is will be a shot in the arm for the Navy as the country has been building up its naval surveillance capabilities to check China’s presence in the Indian Ocean.