First flight of Made in India HAL Dornier Do-228 has taken off from Dibrugarh in Assam to Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh.
Background –
- In September 2021, HAL signed a lease agreement with Alliance Air Aviation Limited for the supply of two civil Do-228 aircraft for regional operations in Arunachal Pradesh. The agreement was signed in Bengaluru. Alliance Air received its first Dornier-228 on April 7.
- In a bid to further boost air connectivity of the region with the rest of the country, the Ministry of Civil Aviation approved a scheme – ‘Providing air connectivity and Aviation infrastructure in North Eastern Region (NER)’ to promote air connectivity in the States of NER.
Details about Dornier-228 –
- The 17-seater non-pressurised Dornier-228 aircraft has a turboprop engine and is fitted with an AC cabin. It is capable of day and night operations, short take-off and landing, and can land and take off from semi-prepared runways.
- Dornier-228 has been specifically built to “meet the manifold requirements of utility and commuter transport, air-taxi operations, coast guard duties and maritime surveillance”.
- As per a modification document of Do-228, the civil aircraft will be equipped with a digital cockpit to ensure accurate readings, precise information and capability for self-check to alert the pilot in emergencies.
- Dornier 228 was designed and first manufactured by Dornier GmbH. After securing product licence, HAL started the manufacturing at its transport aircraft division in Kanpur after transfer of technology from the German firm.
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