India To Sell Sukhoi Spares To Malaysia, In Return Buy Mig-29 fighters
India is keen to buy MiG-29 aircraft from Malaysia, upgrade them for use by its air force in return for Sukhoi fighter spares to Kuala Lumpur.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak said the proposal was among the aspects of military cooperation agreed to by Malaysia and India, New Straits Times reported Wednesday.
"There is a possibility too that they will buy our MiG-29 aircraft for refit. We reciprocate by accepting spare parts for our Sukhoi aircraft programme," he told a media conference at the end of a six-day visit to India which started on March 30 in Chennai.
The Malaysian Ministry of Defence and the Royal Malaysian Air Force (TUDM) would look at the form of cooperation, including handling the Sukhoi aircraft and spare parts.
According to leading military aviation magazine, 'Air Forces Monthly', the Royal Malaysian Air Force in 1995 procured 18 MiG-29N from Russia, and presently has 10 MiG-29N and 2 MiG-29NU (trainers) in its fleet.