HAL, Safran sign agreement to create JV to build helicopter engines

HAL and Safran's existing partnerships include the Shakti engine that can propel helicopters to altitudes above 20,000 ft where the Indian Army is deployed.

Amongst the most ground-breaking technological successes notched up by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) are its single-engine and twin-engine helicopters – in the former segment, the eponymous Light Utility Helicopter (LUH); and in the latter, the Dhruv advanced light helicopter (ALH), the Rudra attack helicopter and the Light Combat Helicopter (LCH).

The common feature in all these choppers is the remarkable Shakti engine, which is powerful enough to propel them to the dizzying heights of Kargil, or the Saltoro Ridge, where the Indian Army is deployed in posts like Sonam and Bana Top, at altitudes above 20,000 feet.

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