HAL Preparing For Its Most Ambitious Helicopter Program Ever

After cancelling an international tender to procure 197 utility helicopters, the Indian MoD has fallen back on Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to fill the gap with its Light Utility Helicopter (LUH).

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) reported approved a proposal to allow HAL to manufacture 440 light utility helicopters to be supplied to the Army, Navy and Air Force earlier this month. HAL will work with private sector firms in partnership with foreign players, according to various reports. However it’s unclear who these partners might be.

According to unconfirmed reports, HAL is rushing to finish development of the prototype which it plans to unveil in time for the Aero India show scheduled to take place in February 2015.

HAL Director (Design & Development), N C Agarwal talked about the design freeze last year telling local media that “the drawings are getting released and the parts are getting manufactured.”

“The LUH programme is progressing well and the project has achieved ‘design freeze’ following the concurrence from armed forces headquarters. The first ground test vehicle is being readied for factory tests,” HAL officials were quoted as saying by the Press Trust of India last year.

HAL is likely to borrow heavily from its successful advanced light helicopter (ALH) project of which it has manufactured more than 150 machines.  The Indian Air Force has set up a helicopter aerobatics team called “Sarang” using ALH helicopters.

The single-engine chopper will be powered by a French engine made by Turbomeca. Philippe Couteaux, VP and General Manager, Airframes, Turbomeca, had told India Strategic that this engine will definitely meet all the specifications set by HAL, which he hopes will be frozen very soon. Shakti, based on Turbomeca’s Ardiden engine, is already fitted on board HAL’s Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter.

The LUH is expected to fly at 120 knots with a service ceiling of 21,300 feet; the range with a 900-pound payload will be 190 nm. The Indian MoD last month retracted a tender to procure 197 light choppers worth $1.5 billion. 

The reason for cancelling the tender was attributed to an ongoing bribery investigation involving AgustaWestland and Finmeccanica.

Earlier this year, HAL won approval from the government to establish a helicopter manufacturing facility in Tumkur, about 70 km from its main facility in Bangalore. The cost of the facility is said to be $ 657 million.