Light Combat Helicopter Hits India’s Skies

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NEW DELHI, INDIA (GaeaTimes.com)- The light combat helicopter, manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, hit the skies on Sunday. The launch of this helicopter gives India the honor to share space with such countries of the world which also possess similarly designed choppers. Needless to say, the helicopter has been specially designed for the Armed Forces of the country and the government is hoping that this time there will be no cases of accident, as was seen earlier.

Air Marshal P.K. Barbora, the Vice-Chief of Air Staff in India inaugurated the prototype of the light combat helicopter on Sunday, announcing that the choppers which have been manufactured in India itself will finally fly the skies four years from now. The LCH as it is popularly referred to is an advanced form of the “Dhruv” helicopter, another all-purpose chopper which had been designed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited many years back.

The light combat helicopter is expected to weigh at 5.5 tonnes, and the government of India has announced that the chopper will be used to shoot targets on the ground and air and at the same time the forces can also shoot moving elements while flying in the skies. Considering that the helicopter is really light, it may well take part in counter-insurgency and urban warfare, with the Armed Forces toying with the idea of using the light combat helicopter in search and rescue operations as well.

The government of India has spent a total amount of 376 crores on this project and is hoping that the light combat helicopter does not repeat the past mistakes made by the other choppers that the country has seen in the past.