DTN News: India Fast-Track Acquisition For Defense ~ US Offers Its Coast Guard Choppers To India

DTN News: India Fast-Track Acquisition For Defense ~ US Offers Its Coast Guard Choppers To India (NSI News Source Info) NEW DELHI - June 9, 2009: The US has offered to lease out 12 of its Coast Guard's twin-engine helicopters to India which is looking to strengthen its coastal security following the Mumbai terror attacks.Dornier 228 NG ~ Purchased from Germany principally to be used as a light transport aircraft in the IAF, they are used in a variety of roles such as maritime patrol, search & rescue and reconnaissance in the Navy and in the Coast Guard. Both services operates 24 examples each of the type. The Do-228s complement the Tu-142 and the Il-38, in the maritime surveillance role, and are used to patrol coastal areas as well. In March 2005, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) cleared the induction of eleven Do-228-101 aircraft for the Indian Navy. Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee stated that the purchase of these aircraft along with spares, engines, ground support equipment and operational role equipment would cost Rs 726 crore including a foreign exchange component of Rs 431.65 crore. He also mentioned that these aircraft will be used for maritime surveillance. No.310 Cobras Squadron was re-commissioned, with six Do-228 aircraft, in the IW (Information Warfare) role. The squadron is based at INS Hansa at Dabolim, Goa and is used in the ELINT (Electronic Intelligence) role. A press release from the MoD, dated 17 August 2005, stated that the Indian Navy acquired ten Do-228 aircraft from November 1998 to December 1999, for a cost of Rs 388.30 crore. HAL has received a $72 million order for seven license-built Do-228-101 Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) from the Coast Guard. They are likely to be supplemented by an additional 12 aircraft, in the follow-on five-year plan period after 2007. Deliveries were expected to commence in 2001 and was expected to take two years to complete. To date, there have been no confirmed reports from the Indian Coast Guard or HAL indicating that deliveries have taken place.*

"As the acquisition process will take time, we (India) want to have 12 twin-engine helicopters on lease for the Coast Guard. The US has offered to lease out its Coast Guard helicopters to us," a senior Defence Ministry official said here today.

However, India has also got some offers from within the country. But it has to be seen if these civilian helicopters would meet the Coast Guard's military needs, the official said.

Under the fast-track acquisition process, the Coast Guard was asked by the government to purchase 12 Dornier transport aircraft for medium-range surveillance activities and the proposal has been approved already.

"The purchase of 12 dorniers for the Coast Guard has been approved and government-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited will supply five Dorniers by this year end," the official said, when asked about the fast-track acquisition process in the wake of the 26/11 attacks.

The 12 twin-engine helicopters to be leased were meant to augment the Dornier fleet for surveillance and reconnaissance activities.

HAL Delivers First Dornier 228 NG Ship-Set

HAL Delivers First Dornier 228 NG Ship-Set

(NSI News Source Info) March 4, 2009: Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) in Kanpur (India), most important partner of RUAG Aerospace under the Dornier 228 NG (New Generation) relaunch programme, has supplied the first set of structural parts (ship-set) to RUAG Aerospace Services GmbH in Oberpfaffenhofen (Germany). Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in Kanpur (India) is the supplier for the structural components of fuselage, wing and tail. HAL has been building Dornier 228 aircraft under license for the Indian market for many years, and is the most important partner of RUAG for the "Dornier 228 New Generation" project. Final assembly and equipping of the new aircraft will take on the site at Oberpfaffenhofen / Germany. This ship-set was handed over mid-February, less than one year after contract signing. The ship-set consists of fuselage, wings and tail unit and will arrive mid-April 2009 in Oberpfaffenhofen where the final assembly of the first Dornier 228 NG aircraft starts. First delivery of a Dornier 228 NG to a customer is scheduled to take place early in 2010.

The main changes against the previous Dornier 228-212 model are a new 5-blade propeller made of composite material with enhanced performance, as well as an advanced glass cockpit and new digital avionics.

A handover ceremony together with approx. 1500 invited guests from politics and economy took place mid-February 2009 to celebrate supply of the first ship-set in India. Ashok Baweja, Chairman of HAL and Wolfgang Neumann, managing director of RUAG Aerospace Services in Oberpfaffenhofen, underlined the strategic importance of this project for both companies and praised the reliable cooperation.

Certification obtained in January by HAL as a manufacturer meeting the EASA requirements is a great step toward future development of the HAL company in India. HAL as licensee has already built and sold more than 80 Dornier 228 aircraft.

Current orders and options on hand are 10 aircraft.

"We are very proud of the good order situation, which reflects the result of our market study and the demand for a niche product like the Dornier 228 NG. Our customers who still prefer not to be mentioned by name come from Japan, Australia, Mexico and Argentina. The aircraft will be used in regional transport, in particular from STOL runways, with special equipment for coast, environment and border control tasks", says Wolfgang Neumann.

The Dornier 228 NG excels by its high mission flexibility, reliability and economic efficiency in operation.