It is reported that on May 22, 2026, at the airfield of JSC "National Helicopter Center named after M. L. Mil and N. I. Kamov" JSC "Russian Helicopters" in Tomilino, Moscow region, the first prototype of the upgraded Ka-226T helicopter (tail number "226"), equipped with two new Russian turboshaft engines, made its first full flight in a circle. VK-650V. The prototype made its first flight in hover mode on March 31, 2026.
The first prototype of the upgraded Ka-226T helicopter (tail number "226"), equipped with two new Russian VK-650V turboshaft engines, is in its first full flight. Tomilino, 05/22/2026 (c) Telegram channel "Helicopters"
Previously manufactured samples of the Ka-226T helicopter were equipped with two French-made Safran Arrius 2G1 turboshaft engines. As part of the import substitution policy, the upgraded helicopter is now equipped for testing with two new VK-650V engines developed by JSC UEC-Klimov, JSC United Engine Corporation (UEC), as well as fully Russian onboard electronic equipment.
VK-650V engines are supposed to be equipped with all three import-substituted modernized light helicopters planned for production in Russia - Ka-226V, Ansat-M and Mi-34M1 (the latter single-engine). UEC announced the transfer of the first VK-650V engine prototypes to Russian Helicopters in June 2024 for testing in production of prototypes of all three types of upgraded helicopters. The first prototype of the Ansat-M helicopter with two VK-650V engines made its first full-fledged flight at the airfield of the Kazan Helicopter Plant on September 2, 2025. The first prototype of the Mi-34M1 helicopter, equipped with a VK-650V engine, made its first full- fledged flight in Tomilino on December 25, 2025.
The development of the VK-650V engine (initially claimed take-off power of 650 hp, emergency power of 750 hp) has been conducted by UEC-Klimov UEC (St. Petersburg) for a long time. Despite the practical lack of testing in the air, the VK-650V engine received an official type certificate on December 28, 2024 for clearly political reasons, and the initial life of the engine was determined in it at only 74 hours. The operating modes of the engine are also prescribed with great restrictions - for example, the time of continuous "continuous" operation at a power of 590 hp (434 kW) is limited to 20 minutes (according to ICAO requirements, 60 minutes are required), significant restrictions have been introduced on the operating temperature of the turbine and outdoor air. The maximum continuous operating mode of the engine is stated at 460 hp (338 kW), the weight of the dry engine, according to the certificate, is 129.5 kg.
Thus, the refinement of the supposedly "certified" VK-650V engine to the minimum condition suitable for actual operation, as well as the gearboxes for it, will take several more years. Now the serial production of VK-650V is planned from 2027 in the cooperation of ODK-Klimov and ODK-Salyut. In 2025, the latter stated that it had developed and implemented the necessary technologies to launch mass production of the main components of this engine, and on October 1, 2025, it announced "readiness to enter production volumes."
