Aerospace Diary

by  Neelam Mathews  -  January 14, 2019, 1:26 PM The first AH-64E for the Indian Air Force first flew in July 2018. The army is also to receive six of the type. (photo: Boeing) The Indian Army is looking forward to putting into operation a range of helicopters, of which its most prized 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 ongoing for over six years between the Indian Army Aviation Corps (AAC) and IAF concerning who will operate the attack helicopters may be simmering again. The Ministry of Defense assigned ownership, operation and maintenance of attack helicopters to the AAC in November 2012, but the current status remains elusive.The Indian Amy Chief, Bipin Rawat, accepted when talking to  AIN  on January 10 that the IAF will get their Apaches first, an...

AIN AIR TRANSPORT PERSPECTIVE  »  APRIL 1, 2013 by    NEELAM MATHEWS IATA director general Tony Tyler (right) urged Ajit Singh, India’s minister for civil aviation, to accelerate the pace of air transport policy reform at last week’s India Aviation Day conference in New Delhi.  April 1, 2013, 6:00 PM India’s long-awaited new civil aviation policy needs to address key issues on infrastructure and high taxation, according to Tony Tyler, director general and  CEO  of the International Air Transport Association ( IATA ). Speaking at the annual India Aviation Day in New Delhi on March 26, he urged the country’s government to produce a coordinated policy framework for aviation that all relevant departments, including the ministries for finance, economy, development, rural infrastructure and tourism, can pursue. Tyler made the point that an uncoordinated approach across government undermines what little aviation policy India no...

Issue- Nov 2012 Neelam Mathews A battle is brewing in the Indian military over who will get the first consignment of the 22 AH-64D Apache attack helicopters ordered by the Indian Air Force (IAF). The dispute comes in light of a recent directive, despite opposition from the IAF, which will permit the Indian Army to procure and operate its own attack helicopters in future. ‘At this point, the fundamental decision is taken. Whether it will be single or twin ownership needs to be worked out and is a matter of detail. The army, now, has a larger role in prioritisation and tasking,’ army spokesman Col Jagdeep Dahiya told Defence Helicopter on 17 October. The army requires around 16 attack helicopters and ‘a roadmap to absorb capability, including training and logistics as per the army’s modernisation plan’, has been worked out.However, the IAF remains unforgiving. ‘Yes, Apache is final now,’ IAF Chief ACM NA...