Indian Air Force to get first made-in-India light combat helicopters today
Under the Atma Nirbhar Abhiyan, or Make-In-India initiative, India has been steadily focusing on increasing its capability to indigenously design, develop and manufacture advanced cutting edge technologies and systems in the defence sector, the government has said.
FollowThe India Air Force is all set to witness the induction of the first made-in-India light combat helicopters on Monday with Union defence minister Rajnath Singh in attendance. On Sunday, the defence minister said that the induction would be a "big boost" to IAF's "combat prowess".
In a tweet, the defence minister said, "I would be in Jodhpur, Rajasthan tomorrow, 3rd October, to attend the Induction ceremony of the first indigenously developed Light Combat Helicopters (LCH). The induction of these helicopters will be a big boost to the IAF’s combat prowess. Looking forward to it."
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Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari will also be present at the event.
All-weather combat capability, high altitude performance, agility, maneuverability, and extended range are among some of the features of a light combat helicopter. These choppers, developed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), are also said to have armour protection, night attack capability and crash-worthy landing gear for better survivability.
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With the hashtag #AtmaNirbharBharat, which translates to "self-reliant India," the Indian Air Force gave a glimpse of these choppers on its Twitter handle.
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In March this year, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) had met under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi had approved the procurement of 15 Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) Limited Series Production at the cost of Rs 3,887 Crore along with Infrastructure sanctions worth Rs. 377 Crore.
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The 5.8-tonne twin-engine helicopter, that will be inducted on Monday, has already completed various weapons firing tests.
Under the Atma Nirbhar Abhiyan, or Make-In-India initiative, India has been steadily focusing on increasing its capability to indigenously design, develop and manufacture advanced cutting edge technologies and systems in the defence sector, the government has said.
