INDIA
DEFENCE CONSULTANTS
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WHAT'S
HOT? –– ANALYSIS OF RECENT HAPPENINGS |
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THE ADVANCED LIGHT HELICOPTER (ALH) STORY An IDC Analysis
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New
Delhi, 09 May 2002
By
and large, India's large military projects have floundered, as the
DRDO decided to be the designer as well as producer (except the
Prithvi and Agni missiles which were piggy backed on ISRO's
achievements and the nuclear bombs on BARC's), whereby the
Parkinson's laws had played havoc in the Organisation. The ARJUN and
its successor MBT are lingering with no end in sight. The LCA, which
was to be test-flown on 20th April, missed another deadline. Hence,
there needs to be a rethink on where the Projects are going
especially the Trishul and the Akash. IDC are convinced that foreign
collaboration alone can save them. So it was good news indeed that India’s Advanced Twin Engine 5-ton Light Helicopter (ALH) called Dhruv (Pole Star), which had been in the making for the last eighteen years with over $ 250 million spent on it, finally came to fruition.
On
30 March 2002
Defence Minister George Fernandes formally handed over two machines,
J-4041 and J-4042, to the Chief of
the Air Staff, ACM S Krishnaswamy at
the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. Bangalore. The ceremony took place in
the presence of NR Mohanty the Chairman of the cash rich HAL. He
became emotional and acknowledged the hard work of those who saw the
project through plenty of turbulence –– by attempting to
incorporate the varied QRs of all the three services –– a feat
in itself, and then got bogged down by sanctions imposed by USA in
1998. The crucial Allied Signals (now Honeywell), LHTEC
800 –– the ALH's intended 1300 shp engine (one was fitted in the
proto type), was denied. This
forced HAL to re-certify the helicopter (with 1300 hours of flying
in desert and high altitude conditions) with two less powerful 1000
shp Turbomeca TM333-2B turbo-shafts, delaying its entry into
service. Turbomeca had already delivered 26 of a total of 82
TM333-2B2 turbo-shafts. On 12 September 2000 a MoU was signed between HAL and Turbomeca to develop a more powerful version of the TM333-2B2 turbo-shaft. The new engine, called Shakti in India and Ardiden in France, is slated to be available for flight tests in 2003 and certification by 2005.
A
snag in the engaging mechanism of the two engines, which took place
some time back when HAL tried to deliver its first machine, also set
the project back. Now it is back on track and the challenge is to
fit the weapon systems as the machines, avionics and radars are put
through their paces, to overcome teething problems. More pilots are
being converted at Bangalore where the support is available. ALH
was conceived to replace the HAL built Cheetah (Lama) and Chetak (Alouette)
helicopters, which have provided yeoman service to the three
services for the last 30 years. The ALH is a multi-role helicopter
for both military and civilian uses, with the Indian Armed Forces as
the captive customers. Work on ALH design began in 1984 with MBB now
Eurocopter. The IAF was expected to be the largest customer and the
total order of the series, which includes 120 for the Army, was
expected to rise to 600 and hence much hope is placed on this
endeavour. The present cost of each machine is $6 million but BELL is waiting in the wings and has offered its Bell 407 versions for co production, while the LHTEC–800 engines are back on offer. Hence the success of the project is being watched with a hawk’s eye, especially the time frame. The Army needs a light attack helicopter badly.
In
March, the Army received its first skid versions IA-1101 to IA-1103,
while Navy’s VAdm SC Gopalachari, took over the wheeled and
slightly more expensive and heavier IN-701 and IN-702. Coast Guard
Director General VAdm O P Bansal accepted CG-851 a version similar
to the Navy’s. Another Ambulance version is being test flown
extensively as there is a market for such a product. Hence eight
basic versions of Dhruv stand delivered and flying. The Army's
version will ultimately have weapons systems including the DRDO’s
fire and forget anti-tank missile NAG integrated, while the other
versions will serve in utility and transport roles. The Dhruv can carry 12 passengers and six in VIP configuration. The endurance of the machine is 4 hours and the maximum speed is expected to be 290 kmph.
The
pilots praise the helicopter’s handling abilities. The ALH has a
four-blade hingeless main rotor with advanced aerofoils and swept
back tips, with a fibre elastoner rotor head and blades held between
a pair of CFRP star-plates. It has manual blade folding and rotor
brake standard, a four-blade bearing-less crossbeam tail rotor on
the starboard side of the fin. Vibration damping is achieved by an
anti-resonance isolation system comprising four isolator elements
between the fuselage and the main gearbox, a fixed tailplane and an
integrated drive system transmission. The Naval ALH has retractable tricycle gear, a folding tail boom, harpoon deck-lock, pressure refuelling and fairings on the fuselage sides to house the main wheels, flotation gear and batteries. The trials have taken place on a Godavari class ship since 1995, which at present carries two Seakings MK 42B. The final Naval variant is to be fitted with dunking sonar, surveillance radar and a tactical mission system, which will need the more powerful engines if it is to be armed with torpedo and missiles for anti-submarine and anti-ship missions. The Navy has ordered 8 KA-31 from Russia in the interim for $ 200 million but the ALH project has taken birth and entered its most crucial phase –– to try to satisfy its customers. All flying fingers are crossed for its success. (Pics: Courtesy bharat-rakshak.com) |
