<p>India and the UK have been engaged in various deals, be it the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) after three years of negotiations or the UK based F-34 fighter.</p><p>The F-34 was in the news recently when the fighter jet was forced to make an emergency landing in Thiruvananthapuram due to a technical glitch. </p>.British Airways plans new India flights, eyes cargo opportunities from India-UK FTA.<p>India and UK relations go way back to the colonial era shaping India’s strategic defence and procurement systems. </p><p>India has acquired INS Vikrant and INS Viraat, Jaguar attack aircraft by Anglo-French manufacturer SEPECAT, and Sea King helicopters from the UK.</p><p><strong>Joint ventures</strong></p><p>The Indian Air Force (IAF) and The Royal Air force (RAF) have engaged in multiple military exercises over the years; Indradhanush was one of the first airspace exercises conducted in 2006 in Gwalior, it is a bilateral exercise focusing on air force training. </p><p>India also participated in the multilateral exercise called Cobra warrior hosted by the RAF in 2023, which focused on on joint tactics among allied air forces.</p><p>The UK was a keen participant in exercise Tarang Shakti, the multilateral military exercise launched by IAF in 2024. The purpose of the exercise was to display India's advancements in global airpower and strengthen ties.</p><p><strong>Co-production</strong></p><p>Realising the potential in India's manufacturing industries, in 2019 the UK with its Government-to-Government Framework had established a pathway of co-development of intellectual property by “creating and making in India.”</p><p>At Aero India 2025 India and UK strengthened their partnership with the announcement of Defence Partnership – India (DP-I) which aims at creating a dedicated programme at the UK Defense Ministry for improved defense collaboration.</p><p>The Thales Group UK and Bharath Bharat Dynamics Ltd have come together to supply Laser Beam Riding MANPAD (LBRM), Very Short Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) and an initial supply of High Velocity Missiles (STARStreak) Missiles and launchers.</p><p>Few other partnerships include, AgustaWestland–Tata Sons’ JV manufacturing AW119 Koala utility helicopters, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited-BAE Systems’ licenced production of Hawk advanced trainer aircraft.</p>
<p>India and the UK have been engaged in various deals, be it the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) after three years of negotiations or the UK based F-34 fighter.</p><p>The F-34 was in the news recently when the fighter jet was forced to make an emergency landing in Thiruvananthapuram due to a technical glitch. </p>.British Airways plans new India flights, eyes cargo opportunities from India-UK FTA.<p>India and UK relations go way back to the colonial era shaping India’s strategic defence and procurement systems. </p><p>India has acquired INS Vikrant and INS Viraat, Jaguar attack aircraft by Anglo-French manufacturer SEPECAT, and Sea King helicopters from the UK.</p><p><strong>Joint ventures</strong></p><p>The Indian Air Force (IAF) and The Royal Air force (RAF) have engaged in multiple military exercises over the years; Indradhanush was one of the first airspace exercises conducted in 2006 in Gwalior, it is a bilateral exercise focusing on air force training. </p><p>India also participated in the multilateral exercise called Cobra warrior hosted by the RAF in 2023, which focused on on joint tactics among allied air forces.</p><p>The UK was a keen participant in exercise Tarang Shakti, the multilateral military exercise launched by IAF in 2024. The purpose of the exercise was to display India's advancements in global airpower and strengthen ties.</p><p><strong>Co-production</strong></p><p>Realising the potential in India's manufacturing industries, in 2019 the UK with its Government-to-Government Framework had established a pathway of co-development of intellectual property by “creating and making in India.”</p><p>At Aero India 2025 India and UK strengthened their partnership with the announcement of Defence Partnership – India (DP-I) which aims at creating a dedicated programme at the UK Defense Ministry for improved defense collaboration.</p><p>The Thales Group UK and Bharath Bharat Dynamics Ltd have come together to supply Laser Beam Riding MANPAD (LBRM), Very Short Range Air Defence (VSHORAD) and an initial supply of High Velocity Missiles (STARStreak) Missiles and launchers.</p><p>Few other partnerships include, AgustaWestland–Tata Sons’ JV manufacturing AW119 Koala utility helicopters, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited-BAE Systems’ licenced production of Hawk advanced trainer aircraft.</p>
