India’s Light Combat Helicopter To Receive Final Clearance This Month

India’s indigenously designed Light Combat Helicopter is all set to achieve final clearance this month.

Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) will start serial production the attack helicopters after getting the clearance, The Hindu reported Friday.

“Having completed all performance trails, final clearance is expected anytime soon from the Center for Military Airworthiness & Certification (CEMILAC) in Bangalore. After that we will integrate weapons and finalise configuration as per the requirements of the end users — the Army and Air Force,” a senior HAL official was quoted as saying by the news daily.

The 5.8 tonne multirole attack chopper is intended to play a major role in providing close air support to ground forces and is the only attack helicopter in the world that can operate at heights of 12,000 feet.

HAL already has a firm order for 65 from the Air Force and 114 from the Army. This number is expected to go up given the army’s plan to have attack helicopters embedded in all formations for close air support.

HAL officials explained that unlike fixed wing aircraft which need Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) and Final Operational Clearance (FOC), helicopters usually get a final clearance. The government had earlier informed Parliament that production plans for LCH have been made from 2017-18.