Boeing has confirmed that its AH-64E Apache attack helicopter has been down selected for a potential programme with the Bangladeshi armed forces.
Company officials confirmed the development in a media briefing on Tuesday (Jan 21), reports Jane's Defence Weekly.
It quoted Boeing’s senior sales and marketing manager for helicopter Terry Jamison saying that Bangladesh's procurement is proceeding through a US Foreign Military Sale.
Bangladesh is actively considering Apache on grounds of both cost and capability, according to him.
"[In Bangladesh] we have been down-selected not just based on capability, but we went head-to-head with some of our competitors and we were down-selected based on price," the Jane's report quoted Jamison.
Boeing's statement follows earlier news reports of Dhaka initiating formal talks with Washington for the Apache and a range of other armaments.
In order to initiate the process, Bangladesh has agreed to sign two critical agreements with the US, the Acquisitions and Cross Servicing Agreement (ACSA) and the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA).
ACSA refers to an agreement between the US coalition partners that allow US forces to exchange most common types of support, including food, fuel, transportation, ammunition, and equipment. The agreement does not, in any way, commit a country to any military action.
GSOMIA is a legally binding deal that will ensure that the US advanced equipment and its knowhow will be protected from others.
According to security analysts, the talks mark the first time that Bangladesh, which has relied heavily on purchases of military hardware from China, has approached the US for defence equipment since its independence in 1971.