India’s Ministry of Civil Aviation has validated what is claimed to be the first helicopter flight in Asia using performance-based navigation technology. On June 1, private operator Poonawalla Aviation flew its Airbus Helicopters H145 from Mumbai Juhu Airport to Pune on low-level route (LLR) RNP 0.3 using India's Gagan satellite-based navigation system.
The demonstration flight was part of the government’s Akash (meaning sky) project, through which the LLR RNP 0.3 route has been developed and designated to provide an optimized flight path for helicopters. The Akash project aims to augment the safety of helicopter flight procedures and support all-weather operations. Three dedicated corridors have been created for flights in India and more are to be added. India’s civil aviation minister, Jyotiraditya Scindia, announced that Juhu’s heliport will be upgraded to handle night flights and IFR routes using Gagan.
“All new aircraft except trainers coming into India will now require Gagan-compatible receivers,” said Vishok Mansingh, CEO of aircraft leasing group Vman Aero. Gagan was jointly developed by the Airports Authority of India, Indian Space Research Organisation, and Raytheon Technologies for both rotorcraft and fixed-wing aircraft to support operations similar to a Cat-3 landing.