India may soon ink an expected $2-billion deal with the US aviation giant Boeing for acquisition of eight Long-Range Maritime Reconnaissance and Anti-submarine Warfare (LRNRAW) aircraft.

If signed, as is likely, this will be the second major deal that India will clinch with an American company, the first being the $1 billion deal with American military aviation company Lockheed Martin for the acquisition of six Hercules C-130-J transport aircraft earlier this year.

The countdown to the signing of the deal, said to be in the final stages, has started even as Indian Navy Chief Admiral, Sureesh Mehta is all set to begin a 10-day official trip to the United States, beginning on Saturday night. Above all, the proposed deal will further cement the strategic defence partnership that India has embarked on, with the United States. India had acquired the US landing platform dock Trenton last year and had recommissioned it in the Navy as the INS Jalashwa.

The Boeing aircraft will be a replacement for the ageing TU-142 maritime reconnaissance aircraft that were procured years ago from Russia. Price-negotiation talks had been on for the past few months between India and the Boeing company. The talks were believed to be in their final stages till recently. The Indian Navy has been suffering shortages of long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft. The ministry of defence had recently told the parliamentary standing committee on defence that the "commercial Negotiation Committee (CNC) is in progress for acquisition of Long-Range Maritime Reconnaissance aircraft".