Army to get 3 Apache attack copters, Navy to induct Seahawks

NEW DELHI: In a boost to India’s rotary wing combat capabilities, the Army is now finally set to get delivery of its three remaining Apache AH-64 attack helicopters from the US, while the Navy will also commission its second squadron of MH-60R Seahawk submarine-hunting choppers this week.

The induction of these much-delayed American helicopters will plug existing operational gaps but the real punch will come when the Army and IAF hopefully begin getting 156 indigenous `Prachand’ light combat helicopters from 2028 onwards.




Overall, the armed forces want over 1,000 new helicopters of different types in the next 10-15 years to make up for major deficiencies as well as replace obsolete Cheetah and Chetak fleets. They include 484 light utility helicopters in the 3.5-tonne class and 419 Indian multi-role helicopters in the 10-15-tonne class, but there have been huge delays in these projects being executed by Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL).

The three Apache gunships, dubbed “tanks in the air” since they are armed with Stinger air-to-air missiles, Hellfire Longbow air-to-ground missiles, guns and rockets, will touch down in India “within a couple of days”, defence officials told TOI.

India had ordered six heavy-duty Apaches for the Army in a Rs 5,691 crore deal with the US in Feb 2020, under which the first three were delivered in July after a huge delay due to supply chain problems faced by Boeing.

These six Apaches will add to the 22 such choppers inducted by IAF in 2019-2020 under a Rs 13,952 crore deal with the US in Sept 2015. The Army Apaches will be deployed at Jodhpur, where a squadron was raised in March last year to cater for the western front with Pakistan.

Navy chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, in turn, will commission the second squadron of Seahawks, armed with Hellfire missiles, MK-54 torpedoes and precision-kill rockets as well as advanced sensors, at INS Hansa in Goa on Dec 17. The first squadron was raised at INS Garuda in Kochi in March 2024.

The US has so far delivered 15 of the 24 Seahawks, which are manufactured by Sikorsky-Lockheed Martin, under a Rs 15,157 crore contract in Feb 2020. Incidentally, the defence ministry last month inked another Rs 7,955 crore contract with the US for follow-on support and spares for the multi-mission helicopters.

While quite expensive, the Seahawks are crucial because the 140-warship Navy is currently grappling with just a handful of old Sea King and Kamov-28 anti-submarine warfare helicopters at a time when the presence of Chinese submarines is only going to further increase in the Indian Ocean Region.

HAL has to deliver the Prachand light combat helicopters -- 90 for Army and 66 for IAF -- in the 2028-2033 timeframe under the mega Rs 62,700 crore contract inked in March this year.

The Prachand helicopters will be armed with 20mm turret guns, 70mm rocket systems and air-to-air missiles for offensive operations and precision-strikes in high-altitude areas like eastern Ladakh and Siachen Glacier on the borders with China and Pakistan.

The 156 highly-agile Prachand helicopters, each weighing 5.8 tonne, will add to the 15 such choppers (10 IAF and 5 Army) already inducted under a Rs 3,887 crore contract in 2022.
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