Domestic industry still struggles with outdated technology, analysts say
China is keen to expand its fast-growing indigenous helicopter industry by reaching out to the Indian market, People’s Liberation Army (PLA) officials said on Tuesday.
The PLA for the first time showcased its Z-9 armed reconnaissance helicopters as it opened its fourth regiment — its first armed helicopter unit — to foreign journalists.
PLA colonels and pilots spoke of both the advantages and difficulties China has faced in developing and relying on home-grown helicopters.
China has, so far, struggled to sell its Z-9 and the more advanced Z-11 helicopters, relying on Pakistan and a few African countries as export destinations. But officials said they said they believed their technology was “fast improving”.
“We are happy to sell these helicopters to India and other countries,” said PLA Colonel Yu Guo Yi.
But India, analysts said, is unlikely to show any interest, with China still relying on outdated expertise. This is in the face of persisting arms embargoes that have restricted access to new technologies from the West since the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989.
The 20-year-old Z-9, for instance, was developed following a licensing agreement with France, based on its older Eurocopter models. The helicopters, still very much in use by the PLA, began being rolled out in 1991 from a manufacturing base in north-eastern Harbin. A variant is being used by the Pakistani Navy.
China, like India, has also relied on Russian helicopters, widely using Mi-17s. But renewed Russian reservations have limited Chinese access to technology.
“Russians have concerns, and feel that China could pose a challenge to them 15, 20 years down the line,” said Srikanth Kondapalli, an expert on the Chinese military at Jawaharlal Nehru University. “They are reluctant to give them strategic technologies which could make them self-sufficient”. As a result, agreements, that reached US $20 billion in 1990 have trickled to around US$ 1 billion today.
India has also been looking to upgrade its helicopters, particularly after a number of accidents. Recent deals with the United States to purchase Apache helicopters have looked to update the aging fleet.
“The Chinese have nothing in that class,” Professor Kondapalli noted.
“India is looking for fourth generation now, but China is still at second or third generation.”
That, however, may soon change. At the PLA’s fourth regiment base in Tongzhou — an eastern Beijing suburb — officers spoke of sweeping changes the army had seen in the past two decades. Once relying on old French and Russian aircraft, the PLA is now looking to induct widely its more advanced Z-11 home-grown helicopters that are a source of pride to the military.
“The biggest change since I joined the army in 1989 is that now, we can totally depend on ourselves to make our helicopters,” said Group Captain Liu Hao (48), who has clocked 2,400 hours of flying time.
Resting his hands on a still-hot Z-9 — after he took it through gravity-defying manoeuvres — he spoke of the benefits of not having to rely on foreign technology.
“We don’t need to import materials and depend on foreign countries making these planes any more,” he said. “Now, we depend only on ourselves.”
Keywords: People’s Liberation Army, outdated copters, Indo-China ties, indigenous helicopter industry, Z-9 helicopters
Chinese officials seem to be crazy to me. How can they even think that India will show interest in their helicopters? Indian military thinks of PLA to be a potential threat to the country's security. Chinese officials should have been sensible enough to recognise that how can an adversary buy their equipments to protect its borders which are under threat by them only..
@Chandra
Are you kidding me? To make these on our own, we need to be working hard on developing our own stuff from the ground up. None of our so-called allies are going to give us their hard-earned technology lessons. Our allies will only sell final products to us. And people like the ones who commented before you will always buy from our allies, because they don't want to develop anything from scratch. Everyone wants to be spoon-fed! Make these ourselves indeed!
The country has already invested huge resources developing
indigenous helicopter Dhruv in design collaboration with ECD
Eurocopter Deutschland . The Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL)
has developed the Dhruv advanced light helicopter (ALH), a light
(5.5t class) multirole and multi-mission helicopter for army, air
force, navy, coastguard and civil operations, for both utility and
attack roles by day and night. The advanced technologies
incorporated in the Dhruv design include anti-resonance vibration
isolation system (ARI), full authority digital electronic control
(FADEC), hinge-less main rotor, bearing-less tail rotor, and an
automatic flight control system. The helicopter is of conventional
design and about two-thirds by weight of composite construction
using Kevlar and carbon-fiber. It will make eminent sense to think
in the direction of debug and further refinement of Dhruv and
possible joint production and cost/risk sharing with ECD Eurocopter
Deutschland. After all ECD is the global leader in rotary wing
design and development.
God only knows how much indigenous our home-grown copters are. If I remember correctly, the CAG had said 70 percent of the the ALH Dhruv components is imported. That makes me wonder what did the DRDO do? Only assemble it and fix the bolts???????
The Apache helicopter is being phased out in the US military. In fact US military planning does not have any future use for combat helicopters. Boeing would be overjoyed to sell helicopters to India.
The Chinese know that India will not buy them but it amuses them to say
that they are willing to sell it to India. They know that India’s ALH
Rudra is far more capable but they want to highlight the fact that India
still imports many components for the ALH but China does not!
There are many uses of helicopters like taking people to places like Tirupati,Yamunotri etc other than using these for taxi purpose to avoid congested city road movements, rapid patient movement, dropping food in flooded areas etc.
Sell our Dhruv to them!!
Is China trying to insult India or is it just a cunning plan. they may be rigged to crash when fighting the Chinese. We are increasingly becoming dependent on the Chinese for all manner of technology. Soon they will hold all our debts. Cant we do these things on our own?
Realy, bad idea. Who on Earth is thinking of this idea? India certainly can do better . There
are many companies all over the World, who make better and China is not one of them.
How about German companies?
I guess not many know, China has an active Arms embargo against it.
Of-course no one follows it. This has French engine in it and one
crashed recently in Africa. I think India should request for one
(Export variant), take a demo, understand its capability and estimate
the original (China’s internal use) and multiply that 3 times, that
would be the force India has to be prepared to stand up to.
But, India should consider raising a few regiments under Army. May be
have two different variants (European and American).
The Z-9 Chinese helicopter is no match for Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter.
(1) Z-9 helicopter is primarily used for troop transportation, where as Apache helicopters ars used for combat operation.
(2) About 233 Z-9 helicopters are deployed in China, Pakistan, Bolivia, Cape Verde, Kenya, Laos, Male, Mauritania and Namibia. More than 1100 Apache helicopters are deployed in the US, UK, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Netherland, Egypt, Greece, Kuwait, Republic of China, Singapore and UAE.
(3) Z-9 is yet to see combat operation. The Apache helicoptors are proven success in combat operations in Panama, Operation Desert Storm in Iraq, Bosnia, Kosovo, Albania, Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
(4) Z-9 helicopters have very minimal operational experience. Apache helicopters have flown more than 3 million miles.
(5) Z-9 is 1-2 generation attack helicopter where as Apache is 3-4 generation combat helicopter.
India, South Korea and Japan are negotiating for Apachees.
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