UPDATE 2-United Tech confirms 2010 profit forecast

* Sees EPS $4.40-$4.65

* Hamilton Sundstrand outlook up, Otis down

* Shares down 1 pct

(Adds details on Carrier, Hamilton)

NEW YORK, March 12 (Reuters) - United Technologies Corp confirmed it expects 2010 profit growth of 7 percent to 13 percent, saying a better outlook at its Hamilton Sundstrand aircraft unit would help offset headwinds at Otis elevator.

The diversified U.S. manufacturer reiterated its 2010 profit forecast of $4.40 to $4.65 per share on revenue of $54 billion to $55 billion.

"We are very well positioned for 2010," Chief Executive Louis Chenevert said in a meeting with analysts on Friday. "We're well positioned for sustainable double-digit earnings growth."

Analysts, on average, expect the world's largest maker of elevators and air conditioners to report 2010 profit of $4.63 per share on revenue of $54.8 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Short-cycle orders, particularly at the company's Carrier air conditioner unit, have started to pick up, particularly in China, said Greg Hayes, chief financial officer.

Hamilton Sundstrand's raised outlook reflected higher profit margins after a year of aggressive cost cutting.

United Tech shares were down 1 percent at $71.33 on the New York Stock Exchange.

Major U.S. industrials, including United Tech, General Electric Co and Caterpillar Inc, are navigating what thus far has been an uncertain economic recovery in the United States after a brutal downturn, and are counting on quicker growth outside the United States to offset sluggish demand at home.

Chenevert, 52, was named chairman of the Hartford, Connecticut-based company on Jan. 1, ending a four-year transition of power from George David.

United Tech's competitors include Eurocopter, a unit of EADS, in helicopters, GE in jet engines and ThyssenKrupp AG in elevators.

The company, which also makes Pratt & Whitney jet engines and Black Hawk military helicopters, said on Wednesday that its board had authorized it to buy back to up to 60 million of its shares -- worth about $4.3 billion at current prices. It aims to repurchase about $1.5 billion worth of its stock this year.

(Reporting by Scott Malone; editing by Gerald E. McCormick, John Wallace, Phil Berlowitz)