Moscow. August 28. INTERFAX-The Russian military department will make a decision on the new appearance of the Airborne Troops at the end of this year, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said.
"Following a visit to the Kazan Helicopter Plant on the eve of the meeting with representatives of the regional Defense Minister of Russia said that the plant will supply the Ministry of Defense with Mi-8, Mi-38 and Ansat helicopters. He said that the military department is working on a new look for the Airborne Troops, " the Defense Ministry said in a statement issued on Saturday.
"I think we will prepare and submit a decision by the end of the year, this concerns the new look of the airborne forces," the minister said, whose words are given in the message.
Shoigu noted that in connection with the transformations of the Airborne Forces, a large number of helicopters, including the Mi-8MTV, will be needed.
"Because we need helicopters that should fly in any weather. And, I think, there will also be a contract for 10 years, as for the Tu-160, " the head of the military department said.
On November 27 last year, Shoigu said that the experiment on the formation of "new type" airborne formations showed the need to improve the use of airborne troops.
"The formations of the new type of Airborne Troops are much more mobile, and their fire capabilities have increased by 20%. At the same time, the mobility of the connection has increased six times, and the firing capabilities have increased by 20%," the minister said at a meeting of the board of the military department.
According to him, as part of the experiment, "new ways of performing combat tasks by amphibious assault units and helicopter units in the course of conducting maneuverable, network and focal military operations were investigated."
In February 2019, the commander of the Airborne Troops, Andrey Serdyukov, announced that a new type of brigade with enhanced combat potential and increased mobility was being created in the Russian Airborne Forces.