The Indian Army is looking forward to putting into operation a range of helicopters, of which its most high-quality are six Boeing AH-64E Apache helicopters being acquired as part of a follow-on order to the deal India signed for 22 Apaches and 15 Chinook heavy-lifters for the Indian air force (IAF) in September 2015.
However, the row that has been constant for over six years between the Indian Army Aviation Corps (AAC) and IAF regarding who will operate the attack helicopters may be simmering again. The Ministry of Defense assign ownership, operation, and preservation of attack helicopters to the AAC in November 2012, but the present status remains elusive. The Indian Amy Chief, Bipin Rawat, conventional when talking to AIN on January 10 that the IAF will get their Apaches first, and "ours will follow, as we are captivated on to them."
He acknowledged that "The major subject being address is who should lastly control the helicopters," adding that the two services are reaching "a consensus on the role and contract for which we are inducting the Apache". Calling the Apache a "tank in the air," Rawat commented that, "we feel in the army that the Apache is a tank-killer and should support and be grouped with the strike/attack formation," to provide support for tanks, infantry and combat vehicles, "in a three-dimensional approach."
In 2012, then-Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne had commented on the tussle that "the country doesn't need small air forces." He had said that the "addition model around the world is working … we can't have these little air forces mounting and doing their own thing." An army official remarked: "In years to come, the IAF will be ensconced in the strategic domain of air power and heavy lift, while the army will be inclined to the planned needs of the environment … the domains are not in disagreement but in performance."
Meanwhile, Rawat spoken satisfaction over the Weapon System Integrated (WSI) Mk-IV variant of the Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter, called the Rudra, the first armed helicopter that has been shaped in India. He said timelines had been given to the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) on carrying out successful trials for the rockets and missiles that had faced some safety issues for the Rudra.
"An interim import will be done to bridge the gap if they cannot reach the timelines," he told AIN. On the Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) that first flew in 2010, Rawat added: "It is the right kind of machine we need for our services. We should take a call on it at the Bangalore Air Show in February." Developer Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd said, "Orders for 15 LCHs were in advanced stages."
