Chinooks used by IAF are absolutely fine: Boeing India president
New Delhi, September 1: After the US Army grounded its fleet of CH-47 helicopters because of a risk of engine fires, the top executive at Boeing India on Thursday said that Chinooks used by the Indian Air Force (IAF) are 'absolutely fine' and do not have any problems.
"IAF contacted our engineers after incidents were reported in the US and have been informed that there is no impact on the helicopter operated by the Indian forces," Salil Gupte, president of Boeing India said.
According to US media reports, the US military grounded its fleet of CH-47 Chinook helicopters after several of them experienced engine fires.
As per the Wall Street Journal, US Army officials were aware of a small number of engine fires with the helicopters, but no injuries or deaths occurred as a result of the incidents.
On Wednesday, the Indian Air Force (IAF) requested information from American-based defence manufacturer Boeing regarding the reasons for the grounding of the US Army's entire fleet of Chinook helicopters.
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The IAF has a fleet of 15 Boeing-built Chinook helicopters, which were acquired from the United States and entered service in March 2019.
"Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter fleet is still operational. India has sought details of the reasons which have led to the grounding of the entire fleet of US Army's Chinook CH-47 helicopters because of a risk of engine fires," Government officials said.
"Indian Air Force Chinook helicopter fleet is still operational. India has sought details of the reasons which have led to the grounding of the entire fleet of US Army's Chinook CH-47 helicopters because of a risk of engine fires," the officials further added.
The Indian fleet of Chinook choppers is based in Chandigarh for operations in the north, with another unit in Assam tasked for operations in the northeast.
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-PTC News
