The Hindu Business Line : Dhruv on wings at Paris

Wing Commander C.D. Upadhyay (centre), HAL's chief test pilot (Rotary wing), stands next to the Dhruv helicopter during a display at the Paris Air Show.

Recently at Le Bourget

"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return."

— Leonardo da Vinci.

LONG BEFORE anyone dreamed of flight, leave alone upward, backward, or sideways, Leonardo da Vinci was thinking of it, in the 1480s. His dream machine, coming true centuries later, remains one of the most sophisticated and useful things in air.

Flying in a helicopter and in a plane is as different as chalk from cheese. Not for the helicopter the climate-controlled, noise-reduced sophistication of an aeroplane.

In a chopper one is as close to elements as one can get. If the air zips in via the open windows — often even the doors — to slap you, the roar of the powerful engine splits your ear-drum. But all this is small price for the high a helicopter ride offers.

For the first-time flight, or sortie as the professionals prefer to call it, there was breathless anticipation for this writer. More so as the copter itself was on a proving mission on foreign soil — the Paris Air Show.

With one foot on the cabin-side pylons, one hand on the door handle, and the other helpfully held by HAL's ground crew, one pulled oneself up into the Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopter, ready for demonstration at the heliport at Le Bourget, the site of the Air Show just outside the French capital.

As soon as ten others, mostly interested buyers, strapped themselves in, HAL's test pilot, a former Indian Air Force veteran, went over the pre-flight checks with the co-pilot, Capt Elfan ap Rees, Editor-in-Chief of Helicopter International, a British magazine, who wanted to evaluate the craft.

After the five-minute exercise, the pilot started the engine. As the engine pitch climbed, the rotor blades began moving, slowly at first but gathering speed quickly to become a blur. Conversation stopped abruptly among the passengers, as sign language took over. Of course, the pilot, the co-pilot and the navigating officer could talk to one another and to the control tower via the head-phones.

Slowly, the pilot pulled the joy-stick and the craft took off smoothly. Keeping it 15-20 feet from the ground, the pilot did a taxi along a marked path and when clear of all craft and people, began pulling up the helicopter even while increasing the speed.

Within minutes we were flying above Le Bourget, and at good speed too. Away from any air traffic and over a clear field, the pilots began putting the copter through paces — flying low, climbing rapidly, banking left and then right, hovering high and low... Even to the uninitiated the craft seemed to be behaving great. Unlike in an airliner, one is very conscious of the speed and the height, indeed the flight itself, in a helicopter.

And, how perceptive was da Vinci!

The only disappointment was that soon enough we were headed back to the heliport at Le Bourget. Asked for his valuation of the Dhruv, Capt Rees said that he would give the "user-friendly craft eight out of ten".

Patting with delight the Dhruv on static display at the Air Show, Wing Commander C. D. Upadhyay, HAL's Chief Test Pilot (Rotary Wing) and a former IAF ace who has been involved in the ALH project from the drawing board, said that in its class the ALH is among the best, and that it is capable of doing far more than what was demonstrated to the buyers and journalists.

Wg Cdr Upadhyay should know for he led a mission that saw the Dhruv set a record by flying at a density altitude of 27,000 feet or 8,230 metres above mean sea level (AMSL) in the Himalayan region.

Indigenously designed and developed by the Rotary Wing Research and Design Centre of HAL and produced by HAL's Helicopter Division, Dhruv, says the India-Defence Web site, is a latest twin-engine new generation helicopter in the 4.5-5.5-tonne weight class. It is a multi-role, multi-mission helicopter capable of a wide range of military and civilian applications.

Going technical, India-Defence says that the highly agile and manoeuvrable ALH has high lift and speed capability, excellent hot and high performance, low vibration levels and high payload capacity. Dhruv incorporates a number of advanced technology features. The main rotor is hinge-less that gives the helicopter excellent manoeuvrability; it is also easy to maintain. The tail rotor is bearing-less, and this gives superb power even at altitude.

The imposition of US sanctions against India after the nuclear tests of 1998 restricted access to LHTEC 800, ALH's intended power-plant. This forced HAL to go for Turbomeca TM333-2B turbo-shafts; these engines will be produced under licence by HAL.

These features, says India-Defence, result in a high-performing helicopter with fewer parts leading to high reliability and reduced maintenance, increased safety, low lifecycle cost and multi-mission capability.

Dhruv compares well with other contemporary helicopters of its class. It exceeds the performance of most of its competitors. In terms of commercial parameters, Dhruv is superior in many respects.

HAL has delivered 29 helicopters to the IAF, the Indian Army, the Indian Navy and the Coast Guard. Two helicopters have been exported to Nepal. The craft is used in the hot conditions of Rajasthan, in the snow-clad mountains of the Himalayas and onboard ships.

Dhruv appeared on the international scene at the 2003 Paris Air Show. The IAF, which formed the Helicopter Aerobatic Team, Sarang, only the second of its kind in the world. `Sarang' demonstrated the copter's agility and capability at Asian Aerospace in Singapore in February 2004.

While HAL has contracted the international marketing of Dhruv to Israel Aircraft Industries, it also made an independent pitch at the just-concluded 2005 Paris Air Show and, according to Air Commodore B. Banerjee, General Manager (Marketing), the response was excellent.

According to HAL, with its wide body, spacious cabin, sliding doors, emergency exits, and smooth rides, which are important for passenger comfort, the ALH fits well into the civil role. Large rear clamshell doors provide easy loading of stretchers or other bulky loads.

The helicopter is planned for a wide range of civil roles such as VIP travel, commuting, search and rescue, emergency medical service, disaster relief, offshore operation, and so on. It is easy to fly and economical to maintain with good operational flexibility.

No wonder the high interest for the helicopter at Le Bourget.

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