SAHAYAK-NG: India’s first indigenous Air Dropped Container

December 31, 2020

The SAHAYAK-NG, an air droppable container was tested successfully by the Defence Ministry. It is the first indigenously developed air droppable container.

What are the main features of SAHAYAK-NG?

The SAHAYAK-NG can carry payload up to fifty kilograms.
It can be dropped from heavy aircraft.
It is GPS enabled.
It is an advanced version of SHAYAK Mk I.
The SAHAYAK-NG containers are completely water tight.
They are designed to withstand water entry shocks.
The rate of descent of SAHAYAK-NG container is controlled by a parachute system.

Who designed SAHAYAK-NG?

The SHAYAK-NG was designed by Defence Research Development Organization (DRDO) and Avantel, a private company. The other entities involved in the development of SAHAYAK-NG are NTSL, Visakhapatnam and ARDE, Agra.

Who conducted the test trials of SAHAYAK-NG?

The test trials of SAHAYAK-NG were conducted by the Indian Navy and DRDO.

How will SAHAYAK-NG benefit Indian Navy?

The SAHAYAK-NG will help to provide critical engineering stores to ships that are deployed more than two thousand kilo metres from the coast.
It reduces the requirement of ships to come close to the coast to collect spares and stores.

What are the different types of Air Drop?

The three major types of air drop are low-velocity airdrop, high-velocity air drop and free fall air drop.

What is low-velocity airdrop?

In a low-velocity airdrop, the parachutes are designed to slow down the air droppable container as much as possible before it hits the ground.

What is high-velocity air drop?

This type is meant to stabilize the fall. The parachute will slow the air droppable container but not the extent of low-velocity airdrop. The method is used in delivering military ready to eat meals. LAPES is a high velocity airdrop system. LAPES is Low Altitude Parachute Extraction System. It is currently the most advanced air drop system. It uses touch and go type pattern where the load is ejected in extremely low altitude.