New Delhi: Rolls-Royce, a UK-based aero-engine giant, on January 31 announced that it was bidding for engines for Air India's $ 2.2 billion aircraft acquisition plan and was also hopeful of the deal for the Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT), powered by Adour engines, going through soon.

"We are hopeful of Indian Air Force's AJT deal coming through soon," Tim Jones, managing director of Rolls-Royce India, said. He said for the Air India's long haul aircraft, his company was offering the "world leader Trent 800 engines".

His statement comes even as top officials of several multinational armament giants are in India to pitch for lucrative Defence contracts worth billions of Dollars in anticipation of the government giving the go-ahead in the next two weeks to long- pending Defence deals.

French Prime Minister Jean Pierre Raffarin, Italian Defence Minister Antonio Martino and high-level delegations from the Czech Republic, Russia and UK are also to attend the upcoming Aero-India 2003 at Bangalore.

Major participants at the Bangalore Air Show would include Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Airbus, Rolls-Royce, Dassault, Raytheon, Bell Helicopters and others as officials indicated that major deals like the Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) and acquisition of French Scorpene submarines are likely to sail through.

Jones said a major announcement was expected at the air show, probably for a tie-up with state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) for licensed production of the medium-range transport aircraft to replace the ageing Antonov-32.

PTI