Aérospatiale Alouette III

The Aérospatiale Alouette III (French pronunciation: [alwɛt], Lark; company designations SA 316 and SA 319) is a single-engine, light utility helicopter developed by French aircraft company Sud Aviation. Introduced in the early 1960s, more than 2,000 units were built during its production run that extended for six decades.

The Alouette III was developed as an enlarged derivative of the earlier successful Alouette II. It shared many design elements with its predecessor while offering an extra pair of seats and other refinements. It quickly became a commercial success and was operated by a range of civil and military customers. Further variants were also developed; amongst these was a high-altitude derivative, designated as the SA 315B Lama, which entered operational service during July 1971. The Alouette III was principally manufactured by Aérospatiale, after its take over of Sud Aviation in 1970. The type was also built by various licensed manufacturers such as Hindustan Aeronautics Limited in India (as HAL Chetak), by Industria Aeronautică Română in Romania (as IAR 316), and by Eidgenössisches Flugzeugwerk in Switzerland (as F+W Emmen).

Similar to the Alouette II, in military service, it was used to perform missions such as aerial observation and photography, air-sea rescue, communication liaison, transport, and training. It could also be armed with anti-tank missiles, anti-ship torpedoes, and a fixed cannon. In a civilian capacity, the helicopter was commonly used for casualty evacuation (often fitted with a pair of external stretcher panniers), crop spraying, personnel transportation, and for carrying other external loads.

By the 2010s, many operators were in the process of drawing down their fleets and replacing them with more modern types; the French Armed Forces intended to replace their Alouette IIIs with the newly developed Airbus Helicopters H160 and the Indian Armed Forces with the HAL Dhruvs.