- India's cabinet approves the purchase of Boeing (BA -2.1%) Apache and Chinook helicopters in a deal worth ~$2.5B, just days before Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to arrive in the U.S. to promote investments in India.
- The long-delayed final approval demonstrates India’s efforts to deepen ties with the U.S. and modernize its military; negotiations on the helicopters ended months ago, but budget constraints held up the deal.
- The approval for 22 Apache attack and 15 heavy lift Chinook helicopters, with options to buy an additional 11 Apache and seven Chinook helicopters, is intended to replace the military's aging Soviet-origin choppers.