New Delhi, Jan 29 : A high-level delegation of the US government officials and defence industry will be attending Aero India 2021.
An official statement issued by the US embassy in New Delhi said that Don Heflin, US Chargé d’Affaires, will lead the delegation that includes Kelli L. Seybolt Air Force Deputy Undersecretary, International Affairs; Lieutenant General David A. Krumm 11th Air Force Commander; Major General Mark E. Weatherington 8th Air Force Commander; Brigadier General Brian Bruckbauer Air Force Security Assistance and Cooperation Directorate Director.
The delegation will also include Judith Ravin, US Consul General in Chennai; Aileen Nandi, Minister Counsellor for Commercial Affairs, US Commercial Service; and Rear Admiral Eileen Laubacher, Defense Attaché US Embassy New Delhi.
Public and private participation by the United States in Aero India 2021 demonstrates the importance the United States places on its strategic partnership with India.
“I am pleased to head this year’s US delegation to Aero India to show our continued commitment to strengthening U.S.-India defence cooperation, in line with India’s status as a Major Defence Partner,” Heflin said. “US participation in Aero India 2021 reflects our increasingly close bilateral defense ties and our shared vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.”
The US participation in Aero India 2021 provides both US industry and the US military services the opportunity to strengthen military-to-military relations and defence cooperation with India. “Our two militaries work together to uphold a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific,” Heflin said.
Leading US defence companies are also participating in Aero India 2021, including Aerospace Quality Research & Development LLC, Airborn Inc., Boeing, IEH Corporation, GE Aviation, General Atomics, Hi-Tech Import Export Corporation, L3Harris, Laversab India, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Trakka Systems.
Among the highlights of the show, a B-1B Lancer heavy bomber, of the 28th Bomb Wing based out of Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota, will perform a “fly-by.” The B-1B Lancer, a supersonic heavy bomber is capable of carrying out missions worldwide from its bases in the United States, as well as from forward deployed locations. It carries the largest conventional payload of both guided and unguided weapons in the U.S. Air Force and is considered the backbone of America’s long-range bomber force.
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