ALH grounding a setback, will sort it out soon: Defence secy

The grounding of the locally produced Dhruv advanced light helicopter (ALH) in the wake of a recent crash has come as a slight setback for the armed forces and it will not be taking part in the Republic Day flypast, defence secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said on Monday.

- Rahul Singh

NEW DELHI:

"The ALH's grounding is a little bit of a setback. But (the issues) will get sorted out soon. It is not taking part in the parade as a safety grounding has taken place... but 39 aircraft will take part, and 12 different formations will be displayed. Some helicopters will be there, only the ALH will not be there," he said at a media briefing in South Block ahead of the 76th Republic Day parade.

The military's ALH fleet of around 330 helicopters, designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), was grounded a fortnight ago after a coast guard helicopter crashed at Porbandar in Gujarat on January 5, with authorities still struggling to determine the cause of the accident. Two pilots and an aircrew diver were killed in the latest crash.