NEW DELHI — India has received the first two of 75 Swiss Pilatus PC-7 Mk. II turboprop aircraft purchased to replace its vintage fleet of HPT-32 basic trainers. Flown by Swiss pilots, the two aircraft were received at the Air Force Academy on Feb. 1 in Dundigal near the south Indian city of Hyderabad, a senior Indian air force (IAF) official says. Deliveries will take until August 2015. The IAF is likely to receive at least two aircraft every month, the IAF official says.
NEW DELHI — India’s first indigenously built light attack helicopter, Rudra, has received its Initial Operational Clearance (IOC), and will be showcased at the upcoming Aero India exposition. The armed version of the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH), made by state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL), will be delivered to the Indian army at the 9th Aero India show in the Yelahanka air force base in South India. The show begins Feb. 6. IOC was granted by the Center for Military Airworthiness and Certification on Feb. 3.
