Helicopter repair facility at Honda to start in 3 months: CM

Panaji: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said that the helicopter repair and overhaul facility at Honda in Sattari will commence its operation within three months. He said that infrastructure work at the facility had been completed.

“Within three months, the facility will commence operations. It will generate employment in the state,” Sawant said.

Last week, the CM held discussions with defence minister Rajnath Singh and urged him to commence operations as soon as possible. Singh assured the CM that operations would start.

Almost nine years after the foundation stone was laid for the helicopter repair and overhaul facility at Honda, the plant is yet to be made operational. The construction was delayed due to Covid, there was not much progress. Last year, the work resumed and work is now complete.

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and French aerospace giant Safran have signed an MoU to extend cooperation and explore opportunities for new helicopter engines in civil and military markets. HAL, the defence public sector undertaking, and Safran have set up Helicopter Engines MRO Pvt Ltd (HEMRO) as a joint venture to repair TM333 and Shakti gas turbine engines. The Shakti engine is installed on HAL’s advanced light helicopter known as ‘Dhruv’ and its variants, including ‘Rudra’ and light combat helicopter.

The Ardiden 1U engine powers the new light utility helicopter, a 3-tonne single-engine aircraft.

Former defence minister Manohar Parrikar laid the foundation stone for the project in July 2016, but the Goa Industrial Development Corporation gave the green signal to transfer the land to the aerospace firm only in Dec 2017. HAL acquired the assets of the defunct Goa Automobile Accessories Ltd for Rs 7 crore, and with Safran India, will invest Rs 170 crore to set up HEMRO.

India’s armed forces are among the largest operators of Safran-designed helicopter engines, with over 1,000 engines operational across the country, including 250 TM333 and over 500 Shakti engines. Shakti is the Indian variant of the Safran Ardiden 1H1, co-developed with HAL.