Is an Indian summer on its way for the UK aerospace industry?

The Indian Government is currently considering the Eurofighter Typhoon in a bid that is supported by all four of the Eurofighter partner nations. The programme would be worth at least £5 billion for over 200 UK companies in the supply chain, and would support up to 5,000 jobs in the UK. Business Secretary Dr Vince Cable, who witnessed the signing of the Hawk agreement, alongside the Prime Minister David Cameron, said that he looked for further cooperation between the UK and India on defence. "I am pleased that the Indian Government is considering the Eurofighter Typhoon for its medium multi-role combat aircraft. This bid has the full backing of UK Government," said Dr Cable. According to figures announced recently, the UK is the second largest supplier of defence equipment in the world. Defence sales generated £7.2 billion of sales in 2009, and some 54,000 jobs in the UK are linked to defence exports.