US offers Scorpion to India

US defence secretary two-day visit to India in early June is expected to raise the levels of bilateral strategic and defence co-operation between India and the USA.
The US is expected to offer the Textron AirLand Scorpion light-attack and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft currently being developed to the Indian Air Force (IAF).
Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha of India Air Force who is believed to have expressed interest in the Scorpion, believes the twin-seat platform can double as an intermediate jet trainer (IJT). The IAF badly needs an IJT due to delays to the Sitara (Star) platform, which Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has been developing since 2005.
janes