Army to buy 90 Prachand combat choppers & 110 LUH

The army plans to phase out the ageing and accident-prone Cheetah and Chetak fleet

Indian Army plans to procure more than 90 Prachand Light Combat Helicopters (LCH) and 110 Light Utility Helicopters (LUH) to spruce up its fledgling aviation unit, Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande said here on Tuesday.

A bulk order on 110 LUH, however, would come after a detailed evaluation of the performance of six early versions of the HAL’s light utility chopper that the Army would receive.

As a part of the armed forces’ overall plan to phase out the ageing and accident-prone Cheetah and Chetak fleet, the Army would require around 250 such choppers, at least half of which could be the made-in-India LUH to be manufactured at the HAL’s brand new Tumakuru plant.

Read | HAL plans to sell Tejas LCA to Argentina and Egypt, but loses Malaysian contract

On the sidelines of Aero-India Gen Pande told a group of journalists the army would be inducting the LCHs for deployment in narrow valleys in high-altitude areas as the rotary wing of home-grown combat aircraft has better manoeuvrability for mountainous regions.

The 5.8-tonne twin-engine chopper is capable of destroying enemy tanks, bunkers, drones and other assets in high-altitude regions. The helicopter possesses modern stealth characteristics, robust armour protection and formidable night attack capability. It is capable of operating even in Siachen, the world's highest battlefield.

Of the initial five LCHs, the force received three and the remaining two would be delivered shortly.

On the integration of the Helina missile with the LCH, he said it was "work in progress." The Defence Acquisition Council has accorded approval for the procurement of 40 Helina launchers and 500 missiles.

Gen Pande said the army was expected to receive the first lot of American Apache attack helicopters early next year and the rest would come by 2024 end. The army would be getting six Apache.

The Army Aviation Corps - often described as the Indian Army’s mini air force and was a subject of cold war between the Indian Army and IAF - currently operates four squadrons of weaponised versions of Advanced Lightweight Helicopters besides the Cheetahs and Chetaks.

On threats from drones falling into wrong hands, Gen Pande noted such threats indeed existed, while flagging recent focus on acquiring counter-anti-drone technologies including hand-held drone jammers and spoofers. "We are looking at more soft-kill and hard-kill options for countering drones," he said.

Asked about China deploying new-age technologies along the LAC, the Chief of Army Staff said that the Army has its own electronic warfare units, which are being upgraded. The equipment and sensors in two EW battalions in the north east are getting replaced by new instruments.