BA Boeing Co

   By Santanu Choudhury 
 

NEW DELHI-India has ordered four Boeing Co.-made P-8I maritime patrol and antisubmarine warfare planes, defense ministry officials said Wednesday.

The four aircraft are estimated to cost about $1 billion, a person with knowledge of the matter said separately, and are in addition to eight others ordered by the Indian government in 2009 for about $2.1 billion, the last of which was delivered last year.

The order comes as the Chinese navy increases its presence in the Indian Ocean, alarming New Delhi.

"The agreement was signed earlier today," said one of the ministry officials, who asked not to be named. The official declined to elaborate.

The latest order is the finalization of an option in Boeing's earlier deal that allowed India to buy the four P-8I planes at the 2009 price, the person said.

Based on Boeing 737 commercial aircraft, the P-8I is a variant of the P-8A Poseidon aircraft that Boeing makes for the U.S. Navy.

A spokeswoman for Boeing in India didn't immediately respond to request for comment.

India's defense purchases from the U.S. have expanded multifold amid advancing diplomatic relations between the two democracies. India has been seeking to diversify from its reliance on its long-time supplier, Russia, in its efforts to modernize and expand its military.

Last September, India--the world's largest arms importer--ordered 37 Apache and Chinook military helicopters from Boeing. India's other orders from the U.S. have included C-17 Globemaster airlifters from Boeing and C-130J Super Hercules planes from Lockheed Martin Corp.

India used one of its P-8I planes in 2014 to join the multinational search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.

The aircraft is also being used in the search for an Indian air force AN-32 aircraft that went missing on Friday over the Bay of Bengal.

Write to Santanu Choudhury at santanu.choudhury@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 27, 2016 09:07 ET (13:07 GMT)

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