US Department of Defense has approved the possible sale of combat helicopters and aircraft missiles to Bahrain at an estimated cost of $911.4 million, a Pentagon agency said in a statement.

Bahrain has requested attack helicopters AH-1Z, replacement engines, AGM-114 and APKWS II missiles, as well as radars, communications systems and other equipment, it stated.

General Electric and Textron unit Bell Helicopter are the principal contractors, it added.

The Pentagon said it has delivered the required certification notice to the Congress.

The Pentagon is obliged by the law to notify the Congress of plans to sell weapons or military equipment to other countries. The congressmen have 30 days to block the deal, but this happens extremely rarely.

The US Defense Ministry believes that this deal will not alter the basic military balance in the region, said the Pentagon in its statement.-TradeArabia News Service