Agusta set to bag Rs 3,900-cr VVIP chopper deal

Italian helicopter major AgustaWestland has been recommended by the IAF for the mega deal to acquire 12 helicopters for India’s VVIPs for their cross-country trips. Agusta has beaten the US Sikorsky which claims to be flying VVIPs such as the queen of England.

By Shahid Faridi

Italian helicopter giant AgustaWestland, manufacturer of the state-of-the-art EH-101 choppers, is all set to get a contract for the supply of 12 helicopters to carry Indian VVIPs.

The deal is worth about 400 million Euros (2,600 crore rupees) but is expected to go up to 600 million Euros (3,900 crore rupees) as India is planning to ask the suppliers to install a few more equipments on the choppers. A Field Evaluation done by the IAF has recommended the EH-101, now known as AW-101 helicopters, as the machine that would be safe, spacious, high-powered and comfortable to be used to ferry the Indian president, prime minister, and other top VVIPs across the country.

The U.S. president uses the same helicopter, codenamed “Marine One”. The AW-101’s nearest competitor, American Sikorsky S-92 Superhawk, was found incompatible with the requirements of the IAF on several counts – mainly its capacity to carry the required number of people and power.
The S-92, a U.S. Federal Aviation Administration certified helicopter, has so far clocked 77,000 fleet hours compared to AW-101’s 1,15,000 hours. The AW-101 is also based on Merlin Mk 3A machine, which is flying with the military forces of many western countries.

Among the main drawbacks of the S-92, as mentioned in the Field Evaluation report, was its low Service Ceiling (rate of climb 0.5 metre/sec) of 4.01 km whereas the IAF wants it to be not less than 4.5 km.

Another important IAF requirement is that the “drift down altitude in the event of One Engine Inoperative with payload of 10 passengers inVVIP configuration + 300 kg load and fuel for 1 hr + 15% reserve not be less than 1,500 metres”. During the field trials, the S-92 was found to be 390 lbs heavier. The Hover Out of Ground Effect (HOGE) with the same parameters was also expected to be not less than 1,500 metres, but the aircraft was found to be heavier by 1,900 lbs. On some other points, the S-92 showed “partial compliance”, which would work for non-VVIP aircraft that accompany the VVIP ones. On the AW-101, the Field Evaluation report states the aircraft complies with all the requirements. The report concludes that the S-92 “is non-compliant with three SQRs (Staff Quality Requirements) for VVIP helicopters and one SQR for the non-VVIP version; further, it is partially compliant with two non-VVIP SQRs”.

It further states: “Since the S-92 is non-compliant with SQRs for its VVIP aircraft, its offered package of VVIP and non-VVIP helicopters, is not recommended for induction.”
The report says the AW-101 is “fully compliant” with the SQRs and therefore, “the proposal offered by AgastaWestland as a package (VVIP and non-VVIP) would be suited to meet the role for which the RFP was floated; the helicopter is, thus, recommended for induction into service”. The report says the AW-101 was also preferred by the SPG for its larger volume; besides other advantages, it gives it an inherent “growth potential” for additional equipment at a later stage.
“The higher tail boom height of the AW-101 is also seen as an advantage by the SPG as it would permit VVIP cars to come directly near the rear airstairs, thus providing exposure time to the VVIPs in high threat areas. The Field Evaluation report also adds that irrespective of the
helicopter selected, a Project Monitoring Team, must be formed at the contract stage to closely
monitor the programme.