Advanced light helicopter will remain our workhorse: Army chief

Pune, Jan 15: Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi Wednesday sought to allay apprehensions over the safety of advanced light helicopter (ALH) and said the homegrown chopper has not hit a "rough patch" and it will remain a "workhorse" for the force.

His comments during a press interaction held here after the 77th Army Day Parade come amid reports suggesting there could be safety concerns with this platform, especially after a crash incident in Gujarat's Porbandar early this month.

Gen Dwivedi was asked if the ALH had hit a "rough patch" after the incident.

"Let me assure the countrymen and my Indian Army that ALH has not hit a rough patch. This kind of a small accident keeps taking place, all over the world. Even the best helicopters which are there in the world, they also meet with such accidents," the Army chief said.

In 2023 and 2024, the Indian Army has flown ALH for 40,000 hours. And, in those 40,000 hours there's only one glitch that took place, he said.

"And, we are flying at altitudes of more than 15,000 ft...So, ALH is a workhorse and it will remain a workhorse and we have 100 per cent confidence in this (platform)," the Army chief added.

ALH Dhruv is an indigenously developed platform made by Bengaluru-based Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). Its armed version is ALH Rudra.

Three crew members were killed after an ALH of the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) crashed during landing at Porbandar airport in Gujarat on January 5.