The defense Ministry has approved a program for testing advanced military helicopters Mi-28NM and Mi-26T2B at high altitudes in the Elbrus region, sources in the defense Ministry told Izvestia. They will be held until the end of the year. Flights to the highlands are a necessary stage for completing tests and starting mass production of vehicles on orders for the Aerospace forces (VKS). According to experts, this is a difficult challenge for helicopters, but it should improve their export prospects.
The defense Ministry has approved a program for testing advanced military helicopters Mi-28NM and Mi-26T2B at high altitudes in the Elbrus region, sources in the defense Ministry told Izvestia. They will be held until the end of the year. Flights to the highlands are a necessary stage for completing tests and starting mass production of vehicles on orders for the Aerospace forces (VKS). According to experts, this is a difficult challenge for helicopters, but it should improve their export prospects.
Mountain range
In December, the vehicles will be tested in the Caucasus mountains, sources in the military-industrial complex confirmed to Izvestia. To do this, the prototype Mi-28 OP-1 and Mi-28NM with the tail number 71, as well as Mi-26T2B No. 157 are temporarily relocated to Nalchik. JSC "national center of helicopter construction named after M. L. Mil and N. I. Kamov" has already signed contracts (available to Izvestia) for their airport service in the capital of Kabardino-Balkaria worth about 7 million rubles.
In previous years, some samples of Russian Helicopters equipment, including the Ansat and Mi-171A2, have already been tested there. General Director of the company Andrey Boginsky explained that the test results will be important in negotiations with potential foreign customers.
In the summer of 2010, during a test flight at the top of Elbrus at 4820 m, one of the new army Mi-8AMTSH crashed. This height is close to the limit for helicopters. To evacuate the wreckage a year later, a unique operation was carried out, during which the Mi-26 set seven world records for carrying capacity in the mountains.
The first Mi-28NM has already been tested in mountainous areas, including in Syria. But the conditions of the winter Elbrus region are seriously different due to the higher altitude of the peaks and the cold climate.
In November, the United engine Corporation announced the completion of bench tests of the VK-2500P engine, which will be installed on the Mi-28NM. According to the developer, the machine has an improved control system.
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Image source: iz.ru
This summer, Andrey Boginsky spoke about plans to finish testing the mi-26T2B upgraded To meet the requirements of the Russian military in the first half of 2021, and subsequently develop a special version for Arctic conditions.
- The equipment must be tested in different natural conditions, temperature and flight conditions. After it is successfully tested, it will get the letter O or O1. With it, cars can be sold abroad — " military expert Andrey Frolov explained to Izvestia.
In his opinion, both helicopters have a high export potential and enjoy the attention of potential buyers.
- Algeria and Jordan purchased the Mi-26T2, - said the specialist. — Countries that traditionally purchase Russian equipment are interested in buying the Mi-28NM, and perhaps those who have earlier versions of the Mi-28E. To unify the fleet and increase its capabilities, they can take the Mi-28NM. This helicopter is constantly being upgraded. The current modification is very different from the basic one, but it has a high degree of continuity.
The Afghan experience
In the mountains, helicopter crews are waiting for serious tests, former commander of the 4th army of the air force and air defense, Lieutenant General Valery Gorbenko, told Izvestia.
— Even for planes, the conditions there are not easy. I flew in Afghanistan in the mountains, and it was difficult, and helicopters there are generally not easy, - said the expert. — The difference in height, cleft, from different sides are streams of air. A gust of wind can throw you on the rocks, and it is very difficult to react. Because of this, many catastrophes have occurred. Another feature of the mountainous terrain is the rarefied air at high altitudes, which is fraught with a drop in lift.
According to the expert, Russian pilots and engineers have gained a lot of experience when flying in the mountains of Afghanistan.
-Then it turned out that the Mi-8 and Mi — 24 engines did not pull in mountain conditions, and they had to be changed to more powerful ones, - recalls Valery Gorbenko. — In addition, the sides of the Mi-8 were pierced by bullets, so they were covered with bulletproof vests from the inside. Based on the experience of using helicopters, there were major improvements to the machines.
The Afghan experience spurred the creation of upgraded military and civilian versions of the Mi-8. In the Mi-8MT version, it was equipped with much more powerful and advanced TV3-117 power plants, and the Mi-8MTV also received high-altitude TV3-117VM. With them, Mil's transport vehicles were able to operate as efficiently in the mountains as on the plains. Subsequently, this characteristic became an important competitive advantage and provided them with hundreds of orders from China and India.
Because of the truly unique mountain characteristics, Mil helicopters were purchased even by the United States. Since 2011, they have purchased 63 Mi-17s (an export version of the mi-8) for transfer to the army and law enforcement agencies of Afghanistan. After the introduction of sanctions against Russian arms manufacturers, the Pentagon began to re-equip its ally with its own, more expensive UH-60 Black Hawk. But the inspector General of the us Department of defense, Glenn fine, noted in his 2018 report that two such helicopters are required to transport cargo in mountainous conditions instead of one Russian one. And in some remote parts of the country, the Black hawks were not able to deliver soldiers and cargo at all.
The mi-28NM is the modern successor to the well-established Mi-24 in Afghanistan. It is already equipped with powerful VK-2500P engines, which should give it the best characteristics for operations in the highlands. By the end of the year, the VKS plans to receive the first two helicopters from the batch of 98 vehicles ordered by the defense Ministry.
The new and not yet fully tested transport helicopter giant Mi-26T2 in 2012 lost the tender held by the Indian air force, losing to the American competitor CH-47F Chinook. Subsequently, military and civilian versions of it were sold to Algeria, Venezuela and Jordan. Taking into account the requirements of the Russian VKS, a variant of the Mi-26T2B was developed. The management of Russian Helicopters announced plans to sign a contract with the VKS for the first 10 vehicles after the completion of state tests.
