Hyderabad. At the Wings India 2024 being held at Begumpet Airport, Hyderabad, state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) has showcased its indigenous civil platforms, Hindustan-228 aircraft and ALH Dhruv upgraded civil helicopter.
HAL has also put on static display scale models of LUH (civil variant), Hindustan-228, ALH (civil variant), Line Replaceable Units (LRUs) and accessories pertaining to civil aircraft.
C B Ananthakrishnan, CMD (Additional Charge), HAL has said, “HAL is propelling the initiative of ‘Made in India’ fixed wing civil aircraft to boost regional connectivity in India. The Company is leveraging its strengths in manufacturing aircraft like Do-228 and HS-748 and extending its capabilities to civil aircraft programmes like the Regional Transport Aircraft. HAL is also actively pursuing collaborations for undertaking civil MRO activities.”
Upgraded Dhruv helicopter
The upgraded Dhruv helicopter to be used for civil aviation purposes, is a variant of Advanced Light Helicopter, a 5.5-ton, twin-engine helicopter, designed and developed by HAL. The helicopter can perform various roles like disaster management, Search and Rescue (SAR), under-slung roles, heli-tourism, VIP ferry etc. The helicopter has Advanced Glass Cockpit and avionics. This helicopter would also meet the Regional Connectivity programme (RCS) of the Indian government, under the UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik) initiative.
Hindustan-228
The Hindustan 228 aircraft is a multipurpose, lightweight twin turboprop aircraft indigenously developed by HAL to cater to the remote regional connectivity on short haul air routes under the Regional Connectivity Scheme, UDAN.
Hindustan-228 can be configured for a variety of roles – Regional Airliner/Air Taxi, VIP/Executive Transport, Search and Rescue, Casualty evacuation/Ambulance, Cargo and Logistics Support, Calibration of Airport Nav-aids, Geographical surveys, Aerial photography, etc. The aircraft cockpit is upgraded with fully digital Glass Cockpit, upgraded avionics and systems. The aircraft is Type Certified by DGCA.
The state-owned company has also taken the initiative to develop a civil variant of the LUH and is pursuing the build of the LUH civil prototype with DGCA certification, which is expected to be achieved by December 2025.
