While the Army will be getting around 100 light utility helicopters, it is also looking at the option of taking choppers on lease to meet its requirement.
Bengaluru-headquartered HAL plans to produce more than 1,000 helicopters in the range of 3-15 tonne with a total business of more than Rs 4 lakh crore over a period of 20 years at this facility in Gubbi taluk, officials said.
The defence ministry billed the 615-acre factory as India's largest helicopter-manufacturing facility and it has been planned as a one-stop solution for the country's chopper requirements.
The Army is looking at procuring the LUHs and LCHs to replace its ageing fleets of Cheetah and Chetak helicopters.
The LUH will be one of the two helicopters that will meet the army's urgent need for 394 light helicopters.
Addressing an event in New Delhi, Gen Pande also said the recent global developments have underscored that the security of the nation can neither be outsourced nor be dependent on the largesse of others.
Indonesia are at the top of group A while Mongolia are at the bottom. In Group B, Malaysia are on top of the table.
Dhruv and LUH helicopters must supply provisions to, and evacuate casualties from Siachen Glacier posts like Sonam, which, at 20,997 feet, is the highest inhabited spot on the planet.
The light utility helicopter will replace the military's obsolescent fleet of Chetak and Cheetah helicopters that have flown for over three decades.
The five-day event will include aerial displays by aircraft and helicopters along with a large exhibition and trade fair of aerospace and defence companies.
"We are on the look out for a twin-engined helicopter of modern airframe design and fully integrated advanced avionics to replace our existing fleet of Chetak helicopters, which were inducted about 30-35 years ago," Navy officials said in New Delhi.
The Kamov-226T indigenisation has been complicated by an unusually detailed Inter-Governmental Agreement.
'An armed helicopter equipped with counter-drone systems will provide the airborne counter-drone capability and flexibility needed to protect India's critical assets.'
The Light Utility Helicopter, which Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd is designing for the Indian military, has encountered turbulence even before leaving the drawing board. French engine-maker Turbomeca, whose vaunted Shakti engine was to power the LuH, is demanding what Ministry of Defence sources term 'extortionist prices' for integrating the Shakti with the LuH.
Abhishek Verma and Jyothi Surekha Vennam claimed the top honours in compound mixed pair event to fetch India's only gold medal at the 21st Asian Archery Championships.
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