A civil version of the HAL Dhruv advanced light helicopter. (India Sentinels photo via special arrangement.)
New Delhi: State-owned plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics Limited will showcase its indigenous civil platforms Hindustan-228 (Dornier-228) aircraft and ALH Dhruv upgraded civil helicopter during the Wings India 2024 exhibition, the company said on Wednesday. The event will be held from January 18 to January 21, 2024, at the Begumpet airport in Hyderabad.
The HAL chairman and managing director (additional charge), CB Ananthakrishnan, said, “HAL is propelling the initiative of ‘Made in India’ fixed-wing civil aircraft to boost regional connectivity in India. The company is leveraging its strengths in manufacturing aircraft, like Dornier-228 and HS-748, and extending its capabilities to civil aircraft programmes like the regional transport aircraft. HAL is also actively pursuing collaborations for undertaking civil MRO (maintenance, repairing, and overhauling) activities.”
HAL will be present at Hall A, Stall No. 25 during the show. The HAL stall will display scale models of the civil variant of the light utility helicopter (LUH), the civil variant of the advanced light helicopter (ALH) Hindustan-228, ALH, line replaceable units (LRUs), and other accessories relating to civil aircraft.
During the event, HAL will hold business meetings with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and customers. The company will also enter agreements with its business partners for various projects.
About civil Dhruv ALH and Hindustan-228
Upgraded civil Dhruv helicopter: The upgraded civil Dhruv helicopter, a variant of the advanced light helicopter, is a 5.5-tonne twin-engine helicopter, designed and developed by HAL. The helicopter can perform various roles, such as disaster management, undertake search-and-rescue (SAR) missions, underslung roles, heli-tourism, VIP ferry, etc. The helicopter has an advanced glass cockpit and avionics. This helicopter would meet the government’s Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS).
Hindustan-228: The Hindustan-228 is a multipurpose, lightweight twin-turboprop aircraft indigenously developed by HAL from the Dornier-228, which was first designed and manufactured by Dornier GmbH (later DASA Dornier, Fairchild-Dornier) from 1981 until 1998. In 1983, HAL bought a production licence and manufactured 125 of these at its Kanpur facility. Today, the aircraft’s fuselage, wings, and tail are manufactured by HAL in Kanpur and transported to Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany, where RUAG Aviation carries out aircraft final assembly.
A Hindustan-228 aircraft. (India Sentinels photo via special arrangement.)
The aircraft caters to the remote regional connectivity on short-haul air routes under the Regional Connectivity Scheme, UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik).
The Hindustan-228 can be configured for a variety of roles, like regional airliner/air taxi, VIP/executive transport, SAR, casualty evacuation/air ambulance, provide cargo and logistics support, calibrate systems for airport navigation, carry out geographical surveys, take aerial photography, etc. The aircraft cockpit is upgraded with a fully digital glass cockpit, upgraded avionics and systems. The aircraft is “Type Certified” by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
Civil LUH: HAL has also taken the initiative to develop a civil variant of the light utility helicopter. The company is pursuing the build of the LUH civil prototype with DGCA certification, which is expected to be achieved by December 2025.
