As of 2009 - Ecuador was planning to return remaining Dhruv after
four of the seven supplied crashed. Suffice it to say Dhruv (ALH) is not a runaway success.
https://www.oneindia.com/2009/10/30/ecuador-to-return-6-indian-dhruv-choppers.html
And as of 2015 - "In a major setback for India, Ecuador has grounded all the Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters after four of the seven choppers crashed.
It has unilaterally ended the contract with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, reports NDTV."
https://web.archive.org/web/2015101...736/ecuador-grounds-fleet-dhruv-choppers.html
Bribing ministers of foreign countries can only go so far. Who will want to see a repeat of this in their own air force?
I believe only last year there was an IA incident where the hoist in one of the helis broke. This is unheard of in helis, except in Indian made ones.
Here is the long list of fatal crashes involving Dhruvs. Almost a dozen deaths in the last five years alone.
- In November 2005, a Dhruv crash-landed in Andhra Pradesh, causing the entire fleet to be grounded; the subsequent probe found a fault with the helicopter's tail rotor blades, which has since been corrected.[23][24]
- On 2 February 2007, during rehearsals prior to Aero India, a HAL Dhruv of the Sarang helicopter display team of the Indian Air Force crashed, killing co-pilot Squadron Leader Priye Sharma and injuring the pilot Wing Commander Vikas Jetley.[126] After being in a coma for almost four years, Vikas Jetley died in January 2011.[127] The helicopter team continued to perform in the air show.[128]
- In October 2009, an Ecuadorian Air Force Dhruv flew into the ground near Quito while attempting formation flight with two other helicopters. The remaining six aircraft were grounded during the investigation, which later concluded pilot error to be the cause.[129]
- In February 2010, an Indian Air Force Dhruv was forced to make a crash landing after suffering a loss of power while rehearsing for the "Vayu Shakti" air show; both pilots survived.[23]
- On 14 December 2010, a Dhruv crashed in Jammu injuring all 9 personnel on board.[130]
- On 22 December 2010, a Dhruv crashed in Leh injuring both pilots.[130]
- On 21 April 2011, four army personnel were killed when a Dhruv crashed in north Sikkim. Initial reports pointed to weather as the cause, but a court of inquiry was established to ascertain the exact cause.[131]
- On 19 October 2011, an Indian Border Security Force (BSF) Dhruv (VT-BSH) crashed in north-east India, resulting in the deaths of the three crew on board.[132] The cause of the crash was found to be pilot error due to spatial disorientation.[133]
- On 15 January 2012, a BSF Dhruv (VT-BSN) crashed on the runway at Raipur airport during a test flight; there were no deaths but all five of the crew on board were injured.[134] Investigation by DGCA has concluded that the crash was caused by pilot error.[135] Inadequacies in training of flight crew had been identified.
- On 5 April 2012, a Dhruv was heavily damaged by Maoists who fired upon the helicopter [136]
- On 13 May 2013, a Dhruv crashed in Siachen injuring the pilot and co-pilot [137]
- On 19 December 2013, a Dhruv armed with weapons made an emergency landing in Karnataka.[138]
- On 22 February 2014, an Ecuadorian Air Force Dhruv often used as a presidential transport crashed in the Chimborazo region. The pilot Captain Fabian Pazos Narvaez survived, but three military officials were killed. The incident is under investigation.[139][140]
- On 25 July 2014, an Indian Air Force Dhruv crashed near Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh, India. All seven on board were killed. It had been tracked from the ATC of a Delhi air force station until contact with the aircraft was suddenly lost. A mayday call from the pilots appeared to highlight a mechanical failure as the cause. The IAF ordered a court of inquiry to establish the cause of the crash.[141]
- On 13 January 2015, an Ecuadorian Air Force Dhruv crashed injuring 2 crew members [142]
- On 28 January 2015, an Ecuadorian Air Force Dhruv crashed injuring 4 crew members [142]
- On 11 February 2015, an Indian Army Dhruv crashed in Jammu&Kashmir, killing 2 crew members.[143]
- On 4 July 2017 and Indian Air Force Dhruv crashed in Arunachal Prasesh killing all 4 crew members onboard [144]
- On 5 September 2017 several Indian Army (IA) personnel, including two generals, survived with only minor injuries from the crash in India’s Himalayan region of Ladakh.[145]
