Hindustan Aeronautics Restricted (HAL) Tuesday handed during the last of the 16 Superior Gentle helicopters Mark-III (ALH Mk-III) helicopters to the Indian Coast Guard at a programme in Bengaluru.
HAL additionally obtained a Letter of Intent (LoI) from the maritime organisation for 9 extra ALH Mk-III helicopters.
The Indian Coast Guard had signed a contract with HAL for provide of 16 ALH Mk III in March 2017. The company has inducted 15 choppers thus far.
“We’re proud to be related to HAL and completely satisfied to problem a Letter of Intent (LoI) for 9 extra helicopters. Regardless of COVID-19, HAL delivered all of the helicopters on the shortest time with seamless manufacturing actions and this allowed us to strengthen India’s maritime safety,” DG Coast Guard V S Pathania mentioned.
The Indian Coast Guard has acquired ALH Mk-III helicopters for diversified roles, which embody maritime surveillance, search and rescue, medical evacuation, logistics assist to ships and interdiction. These choppers have been deployed at Porbandar, Bhubaneshwar, Kochi and Chennai.
The indigenous ALH Mk-III chopper (Categorical Picture)
An ALH Mk-III chopper comes outfitted with surveillance radar, electro optic pod, medical intensive care unit, excessive depth searchlight, infrared suppressor, heavy machine gun, glass cockpit and is powered by two shakti helicopter engines. The helicopter is indigenously designed, developed and produced by HAL. The corporate has thus far produced greater than 330 ALHs.
C B Ananthakrishnan, chairman and managing director, HAL mentioned a novel characteristic of the contract has been the efficiency based mostly logistics – a one cease answer for upkeep of those helicopters by HAL. “This may function a benchmark for all our future contracts and increase our resolve to work with non-public companions to hurry up the work within the curiosity of all our clients and strengthen ‘Make-in-India’ actions within the defence ecosystem”, he added.