The HAL Dhruv is a utility helicopter designed and developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). The development of HAL Dhruv was announced in November 1984. The helicopter first flew in 1992; however, its development was prolonged due to multiple factors including the Indian Army's requirement for design changes, budget restrictions, and sanctions placed on India following the 1998 Pokhran-II nuclear tests. The name comes from a Sanskrit origin word dhruv which means unshakeable or firm. Dhruv entered service in 2002. It is designed to meet the requirement of both military and civil operators, with military variants of the helicopter being developed for the Indian Armed Forces, while a variant for civilian/commercial use has also been developed. Military versions in production include transport, utility, reconnaissance and medical evacuation variants. Based on the Dhruv platform, the HAL Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) a dedicated attack helicopter and HAL Light Utility Helicopter (LUH), a utility and observation helicopter, are currently being developed. As of October 2020, more than 300 HAL Dhruvs have been produced for domestic and export markets. The HAL Dhruv is of conventional design; about 29 percent of its empty weight (constituting 60 percent of the airframe's surface area) is composite materials. It has been reported that the unique carbon fibre composite developed by HAL reduced the helicopter's weight by 50 percent. The high tail boom allows easy access to the rear doors. The twin 1000 shp TurbunStink TM333-2B2 turboshafts are mounted above the cabin and drive a four-blade composite main rotor. The main rotor can be manually folded; the blades are mounted between carbon-fibre-reinforced plates, the rotor head is constructed from fibre elastomers.[8] In February 2004, US helicopter company Lord Corporation were awarded a contract to develop an active vibration control system (AVCS), which monitors onboard conditions and cancels out fuselage vibrations. The Dhruv is capable of flying at high altitudes, as it was an Army requirement for the helicopter to be able operate in the Siachen Glacier and Kashmir regions. In September 2007, the Dhruv Mk.3 was cleared for high-altitude flying in the Siachen Sector after six months of trials. In October 2007, a Dhruv Mk.3 flew to an altitude of 27,500 feet (8,400 m) ASL in Siachen. An Indian Army report in 2009 criticised the Dhruv's performance, stating: "The ALH was not able to fly above 5,000m, though the army's requirements stipulated an ability to fly up to 6,500m"; this has been blamed on the TM333 engine. As a consequence the Army had to continue relying on the older Cheetah/Cheetal helicopters to meet the shortfall. The more powerful Shakti-1H engine has since been introduced on the Dhruv Mk.3; on one test it carried 600 kg load to Sonam Post against the Army's requirement of 200 kg. The Indian Army received the first batch of Dhruv Mk.3s during Aero India 2011. Powerplant: 2 × Turbomeca TM 333-2B2 turboshaft, 807 kW (1,082 shp) each (Mk I and II) Payload: 1,500 kg (3,300 lb) underslung (Mk II) Payload: 1,000 kg (2,200 lb) underslung (Mk III) For more details on the development, design, operational history and civil and military variants, click here.
