The INAS 322 is an Indian naval air squadron based at

INS Garuda INS Garuda , is an Indian naval air station located in Kochi, in the state of Kerala. Commissioned on 11 May 1953, it is the oldest operating air station of the Indian Navy. The air station is adjacent to INS Venduruthy and the headquarters of ...

Kochi Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of ...

History

The Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH), also known as 'Dhruv', is the first indigenously designed and manufactured helicopter by HAL Bangalore. ALH was inducted into the Indian Navy on 28 March 2002. The Intensive Flying and Trials Unit (IFTU), formed at INS Garuda on 10 February 2003, undertook three years of intensive flying trials and evaluations. Post completion, the aircraft was cleared for operational exploitation and ALH Flights were established at Kochi and Goa on 1 September 2005. With the amalgamation of the two units in December 2009, ALH Flight Kochi remains the sole ALH operating unit in the Navy. The first ALH squadron was commissioned on 12 November 2013 at INS Garuda, Kochi. The ALH is being employed for a variety of missions including Advanced Search and Rescue, Special Heli-Borne Operations, Armed Patrol, Sniper Ops, VVIP Carriage and Night SAR. Cdr Ravi Sivasankar is the first Commanding Officer of the squadron.

Operations

On 27 April 2016, the

Indian Navy The Indian Navy is the maritime branch of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral, commands the navy. As a blue-water navy, it operates sig ...

stationed an ALH MK III at Maldives, to be based at Kadhdhoo Island in Laamu Atol. The helicopter will assist the

Maldives National Defence Force , image = Emblem of the Maldives National Defence Force.svg , alt = Emblem of the Defence Force , caption = Maldives National Defence Force emblem , image2 = Flag of the Maldives National Defe ...

in undertaking search and rescue, casualty evacuation, coastal surveillance, maritime reconnaissance, communication and logistic duties. The Indian Naval Contingent is headed by Cdr Rohit Gupte and comprises 4 officers and 21 sailors. The technical support team comprises 13 technicians and is headed by Lt Cdr Jithu K Joy. The support team with the spares and support equipment reached

Male Male (Mars symbol, symbol: ♂) is the sex of an organism that produces the gamete (sex cell) known as sperm, which fuses with the larger female gamete, or ovum, in the process of fertilization. A male organism cannot sexual reproduction, repro ...

on 25 April 2016.

References

Aircraft squadrons of the Indian Navy Naval units and formations of India {{India-mil-stub