The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Wednesday sought details from American defence manufacturer Boeing Co about the reasons why the United States (US) Army grounded its entire fleet of Chinook helicopters. The IAF inducted the Chinook helicopters in March 2019 and operates 15 of them.
Over the past few years, Chinook heavy-lift utility helicopters have emerged as one of the major military tools for airlift operations in places like Ladakh and Siachen glaciers to assist Indian armed forces deployed in these regions.
"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 told news agency ANI.
The Wall Street Journal first reported that the US Army has grounded its entire fleet of Chinook helicopters over the risk of engine fires. The report further stated that the issue is with the engine manufactured by Honeywell International Inc.
However, the report quoting officials claimed that no injury or death was has been reported till now. Here it must be mentioned that the US Army has nearly 400 Chinook helicopters in its fleet.
"The Army has identified the root cause of fuel leaks that caused a small number of engine fires among an isolated number of H-47 helicopters, and is implementing corrective measures to resolve this issue," US Army spokeswoman Cynthia O Smith told Reuters.
While no deaths or injuries occurred, the grounding was carried "out of an abundance of caution" until those corrective actions are complete, the US Army spokeswoman further said.
Boeing, meanwhile, has declined to comment and referred questions to the US Army. Similarly, Honeywell has also not responded to the requests for comment.