The LCH cleared for production
Designed and developed for seamless airborne operations in support of ground troops at high altitudes (operational ceiling limit of 6,500 metres), maiden flight of the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) took place over 7 years back, on 29 March 2010 marking successful culmination of three years of design and development efforts by the Rotary Wing Research & Design Centre (RWRDC) of HAL’s Helicopter Complex. Informally named ‘Tiger Bird,’ perhaps inspired by the exceptional high agility of the prototype, the LCH is presently undergoing weapons integration work to meet the requirements of the Indian Air Force and the Indian Army, which have a projected need of 64 and 114 units respectively. The LCH is being developed as a dedicated attack helicopter derived from the Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH), and is fitted with weapons and special mission systems. The helicopter had earlier achieved the distinction of being the first attack helicopter to land at Siachen, doing so with “usable payload and fuel.”
The LCH inherits many technical features of the Dhruv including its rotor system transmission, power plant, hydraulics, IADS, and avionics. The features that are unique to LCH are its sleek and narrow fuselage, crashworthy tri-cycle landing gear, tandem cockpit, self-sealing fuel tanks, aerofoil shaped stub wings for weapons, armour protection, Nuclear, Biological, Chemical (NBC) protection and low visibility features which make the LCH “lethal, agile and survivable.” Notably the flight controls and hydraulics of Dhruv have been re-designed for the LCH.
The helicopter is powered by two HAL/Turbomeca Shakti turboshaft engines, each of which can generate up to 871 kW and run for up to 3,000 hours without maintenance and feature a Full Authority Digital Electronic Control (FADEC) system. The LCH has a cruise speed of 260 km/h, a maximum speed of 275 km/h and a climb rate of 12 m/s, as well as a ferry range of 700 km. As apparent, survivability will be primarily ensured by tactical elements of speed and surprise with natural mountainous terrain offering protection to this highly agile platform.
Fitted with a chin-mounted Nexter M621 20 mm cannon on a THL-20 turret (firing rate: 800 rounds/minute), LCH armament also includes 70 mm rockets (successfully fired at the 2016 Iron Fist firepower demonstration) and guided air-toair/air-to-ground weapons on the stub wings. MBDA PARS3 and indigenous Helina with a range up to 7 km are favoured for the type’s anti-armour weapon, with Rafael’s Spike ATGM also a likely contender. MBDA’s Mistral-2 AAMs are carried to ensure self-protection against hostile aircraft.
The
helicopter has day/night targeting systems for the crew including helmet
mounted sights and an Elbit Compact Multi-Purpose Advanced Stabilisation System
(CoMPASS) electro-optical turret, licence built in India by Bharat Electronics
Limited. The CoMPASS turret includes a CCD camera, third generation 3-5 μm
Forward-Looking Infra-Red (FLIR) sensor, Laser Range Finder (LRF), and Laser
Designator (LD). The LRF and LD facilitate measurement of range to the target
and guidance for the laser guided missiles respectively. A Digital Video
Recorder will enable detailed mission debriefing. The turret gun is controlled
by the Helmet Mounted Sight (HMS) of the gunner, who along with the pilot,
receives adequate inputs from Multi Function Displays (MFD) of the ‘glass
cockpit.’ The LCH will also be fitted with a Saab Self-Protection Suite
consisting of radar/laser warning receivers and Missile Approach Warning
Systems (MAWS) and Countermeasures Dispensing System (CMDS). It is also planned
to integrate IR/ laser jammers on the helicopter.
Another
addition is a Data Link for Network-Centric Warfare (NCW) operations
facilitating transfer of the mission data to the other airborne platforms and
ground stations operating in the network, thus facilitating force
multiplication. NCW in particular will facilitate coordinated air strikes by
fixed wing aircraft like the Mirage 2000 and rotary wing platforms in short predetermined
intervals, thereby maximising battle damage. The LCH is designed for low
detection (visual, aural, radar and infrared) and includes armour protection of
critical areas.
A 30 minute
dry running capability of the gear box is a built in-feature to survive damage
to the transmission system, and crashworthiness features are built into the
wheeled landing gear and main structure while dual redundant systems also
enhance survivability of the helicopter in battlefield environments. The
performance features of the LCH including rate of climb, cruise speed, service
ceiling are comparable with those of contemporary helicopter types such as the
Agusta A129 Mangusta and Airbus HC Tiger. Development costs of the LCH have
been “relatively low” compared to those of other helicopter types in its class,
ensuring lower programme and unit costs. “LCH design is optimised to ensure
ease of maintenance with improved reliability of all the on-board systems to
keep the life cycle operating costs low as well,” stated a HAL designer.
Sayan
Majumdar
Photos:
Angad Singh