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The Indian Army inducted the indigenously designed and developed Light Combat Helicopters

The Indian Army inducted the indigenously designed and developed Light Combat Helicopters (LCH) from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Thursday, 29th September 2022.

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Prachand, India’s new Light Combat Helicopter, doesn’t yet have main arsenal or protection suite

The Indian Army inducted the indigenously designed and developed Light Combat Helicopters (LCH) from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Thursday, 29th September 2022. The first Light Combat Helicopter was handed over to the Army Aviation Corms by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

India is making significant progress in the development of defense products, and HAL is a key element of these amazing creations. Like the Light Combat Helicopter, it is an Indian-built helicopter that has broken numerous performance records.

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On March 30, 2022, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) authorized the purchase of 15 Limited Series Production Light Combat Helicopters at a price of Rs. 3,887 crores. Out of these 15 choppers, the Indian Air Force will receive ten, and five will be inducted into the Indian Army.

After the 10 years of the program, the aircraft significantly received demand and was finally Inducted into the Indian army.  The LCH is a multi-role combat helicopter designed and manufactured by HAL, which is made in HAL’s helicopter division in Bengaluru. The helicopter can carry rockets, air-to-air and anti-tank missiles, and bombs.

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The combat helicopter contains approx. 45% indigenous content by value which will progressively increase to more than 55% for SP Version. State-of-the-art technologies and systems compatible with stealth features such as reduced Visual, Aural, Radar, and IR signatures and crashworthiness features for better survivability.

This helicopter will be operated in combination with the American AH-64 Apache helicopter, which is also employed by the Indian Air Force for various purposes. The LCH, however, performs better than the Apache in one category: range. It has 550 kilometers and a maximum altitude of 6,500 meters. The Apache can fly at a maximum height of 6,400 meters while having a range of only 480 kilometers.

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The helicopter has the necessary agility, maneuverability, range extension, high elevation efficiency, and 24/7/365 all-weather fighting potential to carry out tasks like combat search and rescue (CSAR), destruction of enemy air defense (DEAD), counter-insurgency (CI), functions against slow-moving aircraft and remotely piloted aircraft (RPAs), high altitude bunker busting, counter-insurgency operations in the jungle and urban environments, and support to ground forces.

The production of LCH by HAL will give the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative more momentum and encourage the indigenization of defence production and the nation’s defence industry as part of the ongoing effort to achieve self-reliance in the defence manufacturing sector and reduce imports.

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State of the art technologies and systems compatible with stealth features such as reduced Visual, Aural, Radar and IR signatures and crashworthiness features for better survivability have been integrated in LCH for deployment in combat roles catering to emerging needs for next 3 to 4 decades. Several key aviation technologies like Glass Cockpit and composite airframe structure have been indigenised. The future Series Production version will consist of further modern & indigenous systems.

The Indian Air Force will formally induct the indigenous LCH on 3rd October 2022 at the Jodhpur Air Force base in Rajasthan in the presence of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari.

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The Additional Director General of the Public Information (ADG PI – Indian Army) shared the information in a tweet, which said, “Indigenously designed & developed Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) has been inducted into Indian Army. The first LCH was formally handed over by HAL to Director General, Army Aviation Cops. Highly maneuverable and agile LCH will significantly enhance combat capability

 

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Airlines

Lufthansa is interested in deepening its partnership with Air India to expand its cargo operations

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Lufthansa is interested in deepening its partnership with Air India to expand its cargo operations

Lufthansa is willing to expand its cargo collaboration with Air India in order to increase cargo volumes.

“We believe that a strong Air India is good for both India and global aviation.” “We are always looking for ways to strengthen our ties with Air India,” Lufthansa stated According to the report.

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United and Emirates Expand Market Presence Through New Agreement(Opens in a new browser tab)

In the midst of a robust revival in its cargo sector, the German airline is eager to work more closely with Air India. The ambitious growth plan for Air India includes the installation of wide-body aircraft, which will expand its cargo capacity by 300%.

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“Lufthansa Cargo has seen a strong recovery in India, with cargo volumes recovering to surpass pre-pandemic levels in the first half of 2023,” the company said. Positive forecasts for the remainder of the year include continuous expansion, according to the airline. “India is one of the world’s air freight markets with the quickest rate of growth. As India’s economy continues to expand and its exports rise, there will likely be a rise in the demand for air cargo, it added.

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LATAM Airlines takes delivery of its first A321neo, adds 13 more to order book

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LATAM Airlines takes delivery of its first A321neo, adds 13 more to order book

LATAM Airlines has taken possession of the first A321neo it had leased from AerCap and placed an order for 13 more of the aircraft to boost regional expansion and expand its route network. This A321neo aircraft is the first in a committed backlog of 76 to be delivered. LATAM will receive 111 A320 Family aircraft in total.

Why LATAM retired its entire A350s fleet?(Opens in a new browser tab)

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The recently arrived A321neo for LATAM has Airbus’ Airspace XL bins in the cabin and can accommodate 224 passengers. The larger bins enable 60% more carry-on baggage and 40% more storage space, allowing passengers and cabin crew to board flights more leisurely. 49% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) was used to propel the just-delivered A321neo to its destination.

The largest single-aisle A320 Family model sold by Airbus is the A321neo. The lowest seat-mile cost of any single-aisle aircraft on the market is provided by the A321neo, allowing operators to serve the entire market. Customers from all across the world have ordered more than 5,200 A321neos so far.

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Why LATAM retired its entire A350s fleet?(Opens in a new browser tab)

The LATAM Airlines Group and its affiliates are the major airline group in Latin America, operating internationally throughout Europe, Oceania, the United States, and the Caribbean in addition to five local markets in the region: Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. LATAM is currently Latin America’s largest Airbus operator, flying 240 Airbus aircraft. LATAM received a brand-new Airbus A320neo in July of this year, marking the first delivery made with 30% SAF.

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Airbus has sold over 1,150 aircraft in Latin America and the Caribbean. More than 750 are in operation throughout the region, with more than 520 in the order backlog, representing a market share of 58% of in-service passenger aircraft. Since 1994, Airbus has secured 75% of net orders in the region.

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Wings of Growth: India’s Need for 130-150 Additional Wide-Body Aircraft

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Wings of Growth: India's Need for 130-150 Additional Wide-Body Aircraft

According to Vikram Rai, CEO of GE Aerospace South Asia, India’s civil aviation market, one of the fastest-growing in the world, has the potential to add 130-150 more wide-body aircraft to its fleet. In India, there are now about 700 commercial aircraft in service, although only about 50 of them are wide-body aircraft.

India, the third-largest aviation market in the world with about 1,500 aircraft on order from domestic airlines, is viewed as having “great potential” by GE Aerospace, a key manufacturer of aircraft engines.

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Airbus unveils order from Wizz Air for 75 A321neo aircraft(Opens in a new browser tab)

India is a focus market and a priority market for GE Aerospace” and added that in his opinion, domestic airlines would think about adding more wide-body aircraft to their fleet and using them on busy domestic routes.

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The government is attempting to create international aviation hubs in India in order for domestic airlines to transport passengers directly to a variety of foreign locations as a result of the growing air passenger traffic.

IndiGo announces a special winter sale(Opens in a new browser tab)

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Currently, the majority of passengers flying out of India to distant locations do so on connecting flights run by foreign airlines.”We need to reach a stage where we can transport our passengers from end to finish. We are talking about the next stage of growth here, Rai added.

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