Photo by Ryan ZumMallen
3:30pm | In a move that could have significant impacts to keep production jobs operating in Long Beach, the Indian Air Force announced today that they will order six Boeing C-17 III Globemaster aircraft in addition to ten that have already been purchased.
This could keep the Boeing C-17 in production locally through at least 2013 and possibly longer. Thousands of jobs depend on the plane’s production in Long Beach, and with the federal government vowing not to purchase any more C-17’s, the program’s future had been in jeopardy.
But Boeing announced earlier this year that they would focus on selling the C-17 internationally, and sold six planes to the United Arab Emirates in January.
Congressman Dana Rohrabacher recently visited India and claimed victory for local industry.
“To say this is an opening for new opportunities for cooperation between the U.S. and India is an understatement,” said Rohrabacher, in a statement. “India faces the same security challenges from radical Islam and China as we do. They need the C-17 and so does the United States.”
Boeing announced recently that they will move about 800 jobs from Long Beach to Oklahoma City in a cost-cutting measure, but those jobs were apparently highly-skilled and specialized positions and did not depend on C-17 production. Still, many saw the move as writing on the wall that Boeing was readying to leave Long Beach. Additional C-17 orders from international clients could keep operations here for several years at least.
“This order of six C-17s on top of the 10 already ordered will go a long way to keep jobs here and the Boeing line open, which is good news for southern California at a time when Boeing is sending jobs elsewhere,” said Rohrabacher.