HAL Light Utility Helicopter | Indian Army | Indian Air Force | Indian Aviation Core | Indian Defence Forces
The HAL Light Utility Helicopter along with its derivative Light Observation Helicopter (LOH) is the design and developed by Rotary Wing Research and Design Center (RWR&DC) one of the R&D sections of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for civilian and military applications. They are set to replace older under licensed HAL built versions of Aérospatiale SA 315B Lama (designated Cheetah) and Aérospatiale Alouette III (designated Chetak) in service with the Indian Army and Indian Air Force.
The HAL Light Utility Helicopter (LUH) is a 3-tonne class highly agile new generation light helicopter. According to HAL, it possesses a cruise speed of 235 km/h, a maximum speed of 260 km/h, a service ceiling of up to 6.5 km, a range of 350 km, a maximum take-off weight of 3.12 tonne, and an empty weight of 1.91 tonnes. The LUH will be capable of accommodating a maximum of two pilots and six passengers, all of which shall be seated on crash-worthy seats; externally, it is capable of carrying cargoes of up to 1-tonne under-slung. LUH with a glass cockpit will be able to undertake various missions, including emergency medical services (EMS), troop transport, utility, search and rescue (S&R), VVIP, aerial reconnaissance, and surveillance missions.
In 2018, the LUH finished hot weather trials at Nagpur. Testing at sea-level altitudes was completed at Chennai in 2018 and at Puducherry in 2019. In January 2019, the LUH successfully completed cold weather trials. The LUH undertook successful high altitude hot weather trials between 24 August and 2 September 2019. By 7 February 2020, three prototypes had cumulatively performed over 550 flights. On 7 February 2020, the LUH received its Initial Operational Clearance (IOC) from the Ministry of Defence's (MoD) department of Defence Research and Development. HAL has scheduled to have a final demonstration trial for which two LUH prototypes were landed in Ladakh on 19 August 2020. It is requested by the Indian Army before LUH goes for mass production. HAL announced the completion of the final demonstration trial on 9 September 2020 that involved envelope expansion, performance, flying qualities, payload, and landing capabilities at the highest altitudes of Siachen Glacier. The Final Operational Clearance (FOC) is planned for 2021 that will mainly focus on the automatic flight control system (AFCS).
LUH is powered by a single 750 KW rated Shakti-1U turboshaft engine derived from Safran Ardiden, co-developed by HAL and Turbomeca. It supports dual-channel Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) system along with a backup fuel control system. The helicopter will be equipped with a glass cockpit featuring a Smart Cockpit Display System (SCDS) along with a skid-based landing gear arrangement.
The LUH is to be built for the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force to replace the aging fleet of Cheetah and Chetak helicopters. The Indian armed forces have a requirement for 384 helicopters of which 187 helicopters will be built by HAL. Of the 187 helicopters planned to be ordered, 126 LUH is planned for the Indian Army with the remaining 61 for the Indian Air Force.
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