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So confident is Boeing that its top executives
say that Boeing is looking forward to be the first
in the trials so as to set benchmarks that others
in the competition cannot possibly match.
 The
US spends so much in Research & Development (R&D)
that “our products are unbeatable in hi-tech and
precision engagement,” said Mr Dean Millsap, Regional
Director Asia Pacific for Boeing Rotorcraft Systems.
The heavy lift Chinook for instance is the only
helicopter that can land on water in an emergency,
and also operate just above the water level to
land or evacuate troops or people in a natural
disaster situation.
IAF is looking for 22 Attack and 15 Heavy Lift
helicopters as replacement for its Soviet vintage
Mi 35 Attack and Mi 26 Heavy Lift machines which
have served well but are too old now either to
carry on or bear the burden of modern technology.
The RfP for the two new aircraft was issued last
year and besides Boeing, Russia’s Rosobronexport
has offered newer versions of Mi 35 and Mi 26.
Italy’s Finmeccanica, which owns AgustaWestland
now, has offered the Mangusta attack helicopter,
currently in service with the Italian Army. AgustaWestland
has already won the IAF’s order for 12 VIP helicopters.
As in case of the combat jets for the Medium
Multi Role Combat Aircraft (M-MRCAs), trials for
which have just been over, field trials for both
the new helicopters would be held in hot and humid
weather in the deserts of Rajasthan and heights
of the Himalayas, Jaisalmer and Leh included.
The Indian Army and Air Force are already holding
trials for the utility helicopters in these regions,
which are required in large numbers from imported
and indigenous production kits. There is no Transfer
of Technology (ToT) clause though for manufacturing
the Attack and Heavy Lift helicopters in India.
Notably, IAF’s Mi 35s have been upgraded over
the last few years with Israeli night-fighting
capabilities, but the airframes are too old for
any more technology insertions. IAF had acquired
half a dozen Mi 26 choppers for ferrying supplies
to the Himalayas but hardly a couple of them are
now able to fly, one problem being the lack of
spares as its manufactring facilities have closed
down after the disintegration of the Soviet Union
20 years back.
 Mi
26 is a huge machine though, equivalent to an
An-12 aircraft that the IAF once used to fly.
This writer had seen one of them sometime back
at a forward air base.
But says Millsap: No helicopter can match the
stability of the Chinook, whose contra-rotating
twin-rotors withstand rough weather in land, mountains
and sea. In Afghanistan, where the US and NATO
forces are fighting the Al Qaida and Taliban terrorists,
Chinooks maintain a steady supply to the troops
while the Apaches give them cover if required
in a battlezone.
Adds Dr Vivek Lall, Vice President and India
country head for Boeing Defense and Space (BDS):
“The Apache will be a capable and lethal defender
of India’s troops and assets, while the Chinook
will answer many of the Indian military and humanitarian
requirements.”
While Mr Millsap briefed a visiting Indian media
group, invited by Boeing, on the capabilities
of the AH 64D Block III, which is still under
development, other company executives, Mr Jack
Dougherty and Mr Mark Bellow highlighted the capabilities
of the Chinook with its graphic footage from the
troubled Afghan mountains.
The first Block III Apache would be delivered
to the US Army in 2011, and to the IAF within
three years – or less – of the signing of an agreement.
India is looking for futuristic aircraft with
periodic upgrade capability.
They said that the two rotorcraft more than met
the IAF’s RfP requirements, but would not share
details as the RfP prohibited that. IAF will get
the technology that it wants under a government-togovernment
Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme.
 The
AH 64D has one version with a highly sophisticated
radar, the Longbow, for improved target detection,
increased situational awareness , survivability
and connectivity even with unmanned aerial vehicles
(UAVs). The combatproven AH-64D Apache Longbow,
now being used by the US Army in Afghanistan,
is the newest version of the machine.
Mr Dougherty, Vice President and Programme Manager
for Boeing Rotorfraft, said that the Apache and
Chinook had “a brotherly relationship” to support
a war effort. Apache is routinely deployed to
protect Chinooks, C 17 Globemaster transporters
and other aircraft in low-flying and landing/
takeoff situations.
The Chinook has a multi-spectrum capability for
combat assault, beach and aircraft carrier landings,
medical evacuation, and even VIP transport. Chinooks
have been flown to a height of 16000 feet in Alaska.
The requirement for more has not arisen yet. In
Afghanistan, US Army has carried as many as 75
fully loaded troops although it was conceived
for only 33.
As for the Apache, Mr Millsap pointed out that
it was the only combat helicopter in the world
with night vision devices for both the pilots,
with the capability for switchover roles. It is
equipped with multi sensors, electrooptical, infra
red and others as well as a 30mm cannon with 3500metre
range. Its onboard computers autotarget, calculating
the speeds of bullets as well as any target that
it seeks to destroy.
There are also the Lockheed Martin Hellfire missiles
on board, which are being used by US drones to
kill specific terrorist targets in Afghanistan
and Pakistan.
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