The LCH Prachand: It can do what no other attack helicopter in the world can | Watch

At 18:00, 1000 feet in the summer of 1999, India found out the hard way what it did not have. The Kargil War had placed Indian forces in terrain so extreme, so unforgiving, that conventional close air support was flying at the edge of its operational envelope and struggling. The Russian Mi 25 gunship, India's primary Rotary attack platform at the time, was not built for the Himalayas. When the guns fell silent, the lesson was learned. India needed an attack helicopter that could not just survive at altitude but hunt there. It took 16 years to build the answer and the result is Light Combat Helicopter Prachand. The LCH is the only attack helicopter in the world capable of taking off in landing at altitudes of up to 5000 metres, making it uniquely suited for deployment in extreme terrains. With the service ceiling surpassing that of most light attack helicopters, including the A H 64 Apache, the Prachand is uniquely suited for Indias northern borders, where tensions with China in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh demand robust, survivable platforms. Powered by 2 Hal and Turbo Mecca Shakti engines, the Prachand boasts a combat radius of 500 kilometres and a service ceiling of 21,000 feet, ensuring versatility across diverse terrains and mission profiles. With a maximum take off weight of 5800 kgs, a top speed of 268 kilometres per hour and an oblique climb rate of 12 metres per second, it is built for the kind of rapid ascent and manoeuvre that Himalayan warfare demands. The narrow tandem seat fuselage reduces radar and infrared signatures, giving the helicopter a degree of stealth that conventional Rotary platforms do not possess. Armed with a 20 mm M 62 nose gun, 70 mm rockets, the indigenous Dhruvastra anti tank guided missile and the MBDA Mistral 2 air to air missile with a 6.5 kilometre range, the Prachand delivers precision firepower against tanks, bunkers, drones and enemy aircraft. The 20 mm M 62 cannon in its chin mounted turret can fire at 8:00, 100 rounds per minute and is effective against smaller drones at close ranges. Integrated systems ensure that in a contested environment, the LCH can deliver precision firepower while maintaining situational awareness, something which was recently demonstrated and appreciated by the Indian Army. The Prachand is also getting future proofed against the threat that has defined Modern Warfare, most visibly in Ukraine and now the Middle East. The drone Hal is working to integrate a suite of advanced weapon systems onto the helicopter to transform it from a dedicated attack platform into a comprehensive multi roll aerial weapon system combining direct fire weapons, air launched drones and loitering munitions to counter a wide spectrum of modern threats. Already in service since 2022, the Ministry of Defense has signed 2 contracts for 156 more helicopters out of which 90 will serve in the Indian Army. The first batch of this order is expected by mid 2028. With production already underway in HALS Tumukuru facility. The helicopter that Kargil made necessary has become the platform that Atma Nirbhar Bharat needed, and on the world's highest battlefields, there is currently nothing else like it.