Long overdue, the Defence Ministry has finally cleared the proposal to introduce these attack helicopters to the Indian Army
The Indian army is all set to get one of the most advanced multi-role attack helicopters – the Apache AH-64E. A long-pending proposal to introduce six Apache AH-64E choppers was finally cleared by the Defence Ministry on Thursday.
India had initially ordered 22 of these in September, but only six were cleared at a meeting of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) headed by Defence Minister, Arun Jaitley. So far, the Army’s charter has only had light utility helicopters, but now it will have its own fleet of attack helicopters.
Known to be lethal when it comes to destroying enemy tankers, these will come at a cost of ₹4,168 crore.
Here’s all you need to know about these combat choppers:
- This multi-role chopper can function in any weather and can fight at night.
- It’s air-to-air missiles sets it apart from other enemy helicopters.
- It can track up to 128 targets in less than a minute
- It has a very high missile range and is equipped with advanced sensors and stealth characteristics.
- It also has laser-guided precision Hellfire missiles and Hydra 70 rocket pods.
- It can climb between 2,000 ft – 2,800 ft per minute.
- It can travel up to 279 km/hr.
While other countries like Japan, Israel and Singapore have these choppers, the US has the most number of them.
