HAL on 14 August 2026
said it had entered into partnerships with the Indian industry-Adani Defence
Systems and Technologies Ltd and BEML for manufacturing fuselage structures for
the 'Prachand' Light Combat
Helicopter
(LCH), further expanding India's indigenous
helicopter production
ecosystem. Under the agreements, Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) and Adani Defence will manufacture
48 and 42 fuselage structures, respectively.
Tushar Ranjan Behera, General Manager, Helicopter Division, signed the
agreement with Cmde (Retd.) R. G. K. Rao, ED, Aerospace & Maritime for BEML
and Prasanna Karthik, Vice President, ADSTL, for Adani Defence in the presence
of the senior leadership of HAL, BEML and ADSTL.
"This partnership marks a significant step in strengthening
India's aerospace ecosystem. For the first time, the private industry is being
integrated into the production of helicopter fuselage structures. This
partnership will expand capacity, strengthen the domestic supply chain and
contribute to enhancing indigenous aerospace manufacturing capabilities,"
HAL CMD Ravi K stated.
HAL
has augmented the capacity and already commenced production of the 156 s ordered for the Indian Armed Forces at its new helicopter manufacturing
facility in Tumakuru, Karnataka, it said. The establishment of two additional
production lines will further enhance overall manufacturing capability for the
LCH programme and support the timely delivery of the helicopters to the Indian
Armed Forces.