Army to start phasing out Chetak, Cheetah helicopters in 3-4 yrs

The Indian Army will start phasing out its Cheetah and Chetak helicopters in three to four years, with the entire fleet set to be replaced with new choppers over the next 10 to 12 years as the Army Aviation Corps seeks to modernise its capabilities with new light utility helicopters, attack helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles, top officials aware of the development said on Tuesday.

- Rahul Singh

It will follow a two-pronged replacement approach, induct locally produced light utility helicopters (LUH) and lease similar choppers as a stopgap to meet critical requirements, said one of the officials on condition of anonymity. The army needs around 250 new helicopters.

"We will order around 100 LUHS from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). Given the production capacity of HAL, we must look at alternative means to replace the entire fleet. Leasing some helicopters for a few years is an option, and then we can go back to HAL for the remaining numbers," the official said.

The design of the single-engine Cheetah and Chetak helicopters is almost six decades old, and their airworthiness has been questioned after a string of mishaps in recent years.

Around 15 Cheetahs and Chetaks have crashed during the last 10 years, killing several pilots.