After a string of accidents in 2023, the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Dhruv made another emergency landing while on a flood relief operation. The Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter’s emergency landing was attributed to a technical snag.
The IAF helicopter, which was deployed for a flood relief operation in Bihar’s Sitamarhi district, made an emergency landing in a waterlogged area on October 2 after developing a major technical snag at Nayagaon village under Aurai block in Muzaffarpur district. Four people were on board, and all were safe.
Principal Secretary of Disaster Management Pratyaya Amrit, quoted in the media, said the loss of life and property was averted because the pilot showed presence of mind and landed the aircraft in shallow water after the engine failed.
This is the second accident involving ALH within a month.
In September, an ALH belonging to the Coast Guard, with four personnel onboard, ditched at sea off the Gujarat coast as it approached an Indian-flagged motor tanker, Hari Leela, about 45 km from Porbandar, for a medical evacuation in response to a request from the vessel’s master.
The Coast Guard grounded its fleet as a precautionary measure.
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Accidents Involving Indigenous Rotary Wing Helos
In 2023, the entire fleet of around 330 twin-engine ALHs in the armed forces had to be grounded a few times after four major accidents. The Indian Army accounts for the most – 96 ALHs and 75 armed versions called Rudra. The air force operates around 70 ALHs. The rest are operated by the Navy and the Coast Guard.
The two pilots of the Indian Army were killed in a crash of ALH in Jammu and Kashmir on May 4, 2023. The Indian Army grounded its fleet of 170 ALHs and undertook a comprehensive safety check. The pilots had reported a “loss of power.”
This was the third time that checks have been ordered since October 2022. An Indian Army aviation ALH MK IV variant helicopter had crashed near Migging in Arunachal Pradesh in October, killing all five on board.
In March 2023, the Army, the Indian Air Force, and the Navy grounded their respective ALH fleets and carried out checks. This was after a Navy ALH had to ditch — land the copter on the water — due to “loss of power.”
Specialist teams of state-run aircraft maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), which manufactures the helicopters, did an elaborate safety check on the helicopters and found issues related to control rod failure (affecting power input to rotor blades) and hydraulics issues.
The Dhruv ALH is a twin-engine, multi-mission helicopter in the 5.5-tonne class. ALH operations have been affected in the past, too—the helicopters were grounded in 2006 following tail rotor problems and again in 2014 after a fatal crash.
The Indian forces flagged metallurgical issues with a critical component in the gearbox, the “control rod.” The control rod is essential for transferring power from the copter’s two engines to its overhead rotors.
The main functions of the control rod in a helicopter gearbox are to transmit the pilot’s control inputs to the main rotor and tail rotor systems, allow the pilot to control the pitch of the main rotor and tail rotor, enable the pilot to move the helicopter in the desired direction and is a critical component of the helicopter’s flight control system.
The control rod in ALH is made of aluminum, and HAL decided to replace it with steel control rods in some helicopters.
Special checks have been put in place for the rod every 100 hours of flying instead of the present examination every 300 hours. This will increase the copter’s fatigue tolerance and improve the pilot’s control of the aircraft. A regulatory panel suggested the change.
The helicopter has been involved in a string of incidents in recent years, with a July 2014 crash that left its seven-member crew dead near Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh, one of the worst crashes involving the India-built helicopter. That helicopter had logged only two hours of flying after being serviced at Bareilly.
In another incident, former Northern Army commander Lieutenant General Ranbir Singh and eight others were injured in an ALH crash in the Poonch sector in October 2019.
Crashes Puncture Indian Dreams To Export ALH Dhruv
Notwithstanding the issues faced by the helicopter fleet, the Cabinet Committee on Security has cleared a proposal for 34 new Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Dhruv choppers. Nine will be inducted into the Indian Coast Guard, while 25 will go to the Indian Army.
The indigenous helicopter was the first exported to Ecuador, and after a series of crashes, Ecuador grounded its fleet of ALHs, causing a diplomatic fiasco.
Ecuador grounded its fleet of Indian-made helicopters and put them up for sale. The country also unilaterally canceled its order for more ALHs from India, which sued the Ecuadorian government over the matter.
The Dhruv’s debacle with Ecuador has long haunted it, but its MK III variant could redeem its reputation. In September 2023, an Argentinian team was in India for the trials of the helicopter’s MK III and MK IV variants.
A team of the Argentinian Army was at Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) Bangalore and flew both ALH MKIII and MK IV.
“It was not a customer demonstration but a trial by the Argentinian pilots. The team was very satisfied by the performance of the helicopters,” sources had told the EurAsian Times. Argentina has been looking at ordering 20 of these units.
The ALH MK III has many improvements over the first ALH iteration. The major change is that it is powered by a Shakti engine, developed under a joint venture between HAL and French engine makers Safran. With its glass cockpit, it has advanced maritime patrol radar, electro-optical payload, and a Night Vision device.
The MK III version has a new electronic warfare (EW) suite, warning systems, automatic chaff and flare dispensers, and an improved vibration control system. The MK IV variant is the armed version of the ALH called ‘Rudra.’ It is meant for attack, close air support, and high-altitude operations.
The latest accident will not do much to help Dhruv redeem its reputation.
