India and the US Announce Co-Production of U.S. Sonobuoys for Undersea Domain Awareness (UDA)

• India and the U.S. have announced a co-production of U.S. sonobuoys for UDA for the Indian Navy.

• The technology allows tracking submarines in deep seas and oceans.

• The move is part of a series of cooperation measures to counter China’s rapid expansion in the Indian Ocean Region.

• Ultra Maritime and Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) will jointly manufacture and supply sonobuoys for the Indian Navy as per U.S. Navy standards.

• Production will be split across the U.S. and India, in accordance with “Make in India” principles.

• The sonobuoys co-produced in India are interchangeable and interoperable between U.S. Navy, Indian Navy, and allied P-8, MH-60R, and MQ-9B Sea Guardian aircraft.

• This move is significant as India has acquired military platforms from the U.S. that are also operated by other countries in the region, including Australia and Japan.