HAL Prachand - Light Combat Helicopter (LCH)

[chakshush.arya]

Good work by HAL. now let see how much time it takes to become a mature fighter helicopter

 

[SATISH]

Can somebody shed some light in this. I have been working with helicopters for some time now commercial helicopters. All the landing gear fold inside which improves the aerodynamics of the helicopter for some extent. Why its not provided in LCH.

The landing gear components give an additional weight to the LCH airframe which is already 500 kgs overweight. The same is seen in Mangusta and the Rooivak helicopters.

 

[Rahul Singh]

In addition, fixed landing gear in attack helicopters adds to the survivability during crash or crash landing which is more likely with combat helicopters.

 

[plugwater]

looks like it has weapons on it.

 

[Rahul Singh]

Yes, i can also see something in green however they are for sure dummy or real but carried dead....

 

[plugwater]

Yes, i can also see something in green however they are for sure dummy or real but carried dead....

yeah it must be a dummy. i think they are doing it for tomorrows official first flight.

 

[Anshu Attri]

preparing for official flight...............

c. sumit agrawal

 

[Anshu Attri]

c. bolasanibk

 

[Anshu Attri]

http://tarmak007.blogspot.com/2010/05/lch-update-just-above-my-house-just.html

LCH UPDATE: Just above my house, just above my head, just now, just for you!

The LCH, followed by 2 Sarang Dhruvs, flew some 5-6 times over this blogger's house in Bangalore between 10.40 and 11.15 am today. These are photos shot from an amateur camera and I regret the poor quality. However, these could be first visuals of LCH being escorted by the proven platform Dhruv and the same exercise will be performed tomorrow in front of the august gathering.

 

[Anshu Attri]

http://tarmak007.blogspot.com/2010/05/i-am-proud-of-my-designers-who-gave.html

I am proud of my designers who gave birth to LCH: Ashok Nayak

HAL Chairman Ashok Nayak is a happy man. So are the designers, technicians, engineers and pilots who toiled hard to make the light combat helicopter (LCH) fly. On the eve of the official maiden flight of LCH, Ashok Nayak, in an interview to AVIATION WEEK says that his team did an extremely commendable job. "LCH is the first attack helicopter to be developed indigenously. LCH is most likely the only helicopter to sport the combat helicopter tag in the 5.5 ton category and will have almost all the functionalities required by our defence forces. Integrating all the requirements and keeping a watch on the All-Up-Weight in itself was a big challenge. LCH also incorporates a number of stealth features with reduced Radar and Infra-red signatures. LCH would be a major weapon system in the arsenal of India's Defence forces to counter any external and internal threats. I am proud that our designers have succeeded with flying colors in this endeavour. "

 

[plugwater]

Dedication of LCH to the Nation

Indian aviation fraternity in general and HAL in particular is eager to witness another milestone event, when Hon'ble Defence Minister Shri A.K Antony will dedicate the Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) to the nation on coming Sunday at HAL Airport. Indigenously developed and built by HAL in a record time, a derivative of Advanced Light Helicopter (Dhruv) is an attack helicopter first of its kind in India.

History

It became imminent for the MOD and Indian Air Force that the technologies acquired and developed on the Dhruv platform could be translated into developing a dedicated Light combat helicopter appended with newer technologies like low visibility features, Nuclear Biological and Chemical warfare protection, integration of the latest weapon systems, and electronic warfare suite. The HAL Fraternity expresses its gratitude to the nation, MOD and the Indian Air force for giving it yet another great opportunity in realizing this dream.

Technicality

The LCH inherits many technical features of the Dhruv which includes the rotor system Transmission, power plant, Hydraulics, IADS, weapons system and Avionics. The features that are unique to LCH are Sleek & narrow fuselage, tri-cycle crashworthy landing gear, tandem cockpits, crashworthy & self sealing fuel tanks, aero foil shaped stub wings for weapons, armour protection, NBC protection and, low visibility features Which make the LCH lethal, agile and survivable.

Development philosophy

LCH prototype development was based on the concept of design, ground testing and fabrication concurrently. This resulted in building the 1st machine within 40 months.

The design & manufacturing was carried-out using the state-of-art C.A.D/C.A.M facilities which obviated the requirement of an interface check rig. The ground testing included wind-tunnel testing, landing gear drop tests, and shake test.

A mock up was also built for evaluation by the Indian Air Force.

Development Team

The development team included members of HAL, Indian Air Force, the certification authorities CEMILAC ,DGAQA and the various suppliers of the onboard systems.

Capability and Performance

LCH will be fitted with a 20 mm Turret gun and can carry Rockets, Air-to Air / Air-to-Ground missiles on the weapon stations.

The helicopter would have day/night targeting systems for the crew including the Helmet pointed sight and Electro-optical pod consisting of CCD camera/FLIR/Laser range finder/laser designator. The LRF & LD facilitate measurement of range to the target & guidance to the Laser guided Missiles respectively. A Digital Video Recorder would enable recording of the vital mission for debriefing purposes. The turret gun skewing is controlled by the helmet mounted sight of the gunner.

The LCH is fitted with Self Protection Suite consisting of Radar/Laser Missile warning systems and Countermeasures dispensing system. It is also planned to integrate IR/Laser missile jammer on the helicopter.

The helicopter would be fitted with a Data Link for Network-centric operations facilitating transfer of the mission data to the other airborne platforms and ground stations operating in the Network, thus facilitating force multiplication.

The machine is designed for low detection (visual, aural, radar & infra-red) and includes armour protection of critical areas. A 30 minute dry running capability of the gear box is a built in feature to survive after a ballistic hit to the transmission system. Crashworthiness features are built into the wheel landing gear & structure.

Dual redundant systems also enhance the effectiveness of the helicopter in the battlefield environment.

The performance features of the LCH i.e. rate of climb, cruise speed, service ceiling are on par, if not better than other helicopter in its class like A129/Tiger and with bigger dedicated combat helicopters like Apache, Kamov 30 or Mi-35. LCH has all the makings of a winner in its class of helicopters.


Cost data ( Development cost, unit cost, maintenance cost & operating cost)

The development cost of LCH is very low compared to that of other helicopters in its class, ensuring lower unit costs compared to other attack helicopters. LCH design is optimized to ensure ease of maintenance with improved reliability of all the onboard systems to keep the operating costs low.

Conclusion

Self-reliance in such strategic machines forms an unequivocal requirement for India's defence and products like the Dhruv & the LCH are missions in this direction. May the Light Combat Helicopter serve the nation for decades to come.

http://hal-india.com/LCH-may10.asp

 

[AJSINGH]

All i amlooking forward is to see this attack helicpter in service with Army and Air force is 3 years

 

[plugwater]

Source : livefist

 

[plugwater]

source : livefist

 

[Patriot]

Antony, Pallam Raju not to attend LCH maiden flight function in Bengaluru
BY: ANI

Defence Minister A K Antony and his deputy M.Pallam Raju have cancelled their Sunday visit to Bengaluru, where they were supposed to participate in the inaugural flight launch ceremony of the Advanced Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), in the wake of the Mangalore air disaster.

Sitanshu Kar , Director Indian Air Force Public Relations, told media persons here that both Antony and Pallam Raju had expressed shock over Saturday"s tragedy at Mangalore airport, in which 158 people were killed, and therefore, had decided not attend Sunday's function.
Kar, however, said that the inaugural flight launch function of the LCH, which has been developed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) would continue as per schedule with Indian Air Force Chief Air Chief Marshal P V Naik being the chief guest.

Meanwhile, recovery work in Mangalore, where an Air India Express flight IX-812 from Dubai overshot the runway bursting into flames killing over 150 people on board is still going on.

Several bodies are still believed to be inside the charred remains of the aircraft as rescue teams continue the recovery work in the difficult terrains surrounding Mangalore Airport.

The flight data recorder or the "Black Box", which records the conversation between the pilot of the aircraft and the Air Traffic Controller (ATC) has still not been recovered from the mangled remains of the Boeing 737-800 aircraft, which crashed at 6.30 in the morning today.

Many theories and stories are doing rounds concerning the worst air mishap on the Indian soil in over 14 years, with one of the lucky survivors of the accident saying he heard a loud thud, probably a tyre burst, just before the aircraft caught fire and descended into thick forests.Human failure and technical snag are also being considered as the reasons for the disaster.

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, however, brushed aside allegations regarding airport safety norms being neglected.

Patel said a clearer picture about the actual cause behind the crash would only emerge after a detailed enquiry by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Speaking during a press conference after visiting the crash site, he said had the Mangalore Airport been 'unsafe' there was no possibility of it getting clearance from the concerned authorities to operate flights from there. By Shashank Shantanu

 

[Anshu Attri]

http://tarmak007.blogspot.com/2010/05/snapshots-from-super-sunday-show-lch.html

Snapshots from Super Sunday Show -- LCH Maiden Flight

LCA Tejas PV-2 was the first to fly. (Top & below)

Then came the Hawk.

 

[Anshu Attri]

Dornier followed next.

Dhruv checked in next

 

[Anshu Attri]

Finally, she came. Fast and furious -- the LCH =lovebbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb///////

 

[Anshu Attri]

continue............

 

[plugwater]

India launches its first helicopter gunship