TSAMTO, September 1. The Turkish Aviation Association and Ukrspetsexport Group of Companies signed an agreement on joint maintenance and repair of Mi-17 helicopters during the IDEF-2021 exhibition.
According to Defense News, under the contract, the partners at the repair base in the Turkish province of Isparta will initially provide maintenance and repair services for 18 Mi-17 helicopters, which are currently used by the Turkish Gendarmerie (a branch of the Turkish Armed Forces).
As noted, the further development of Turkish-Ukrainian relations in this direction is associated with the provision of repair and maintenance services for up to 1,500 Russian-made Mi-17 helicopters on the world market.
The general manager of the association, Cemal Balikci, told the Turkish Anadolu news agency that the maintenance and repair of each Mi-17 helicopter will cost $ 2.5 million. According to preliminary estimates, the association will receive 420 thousand dollars. from the modernization of each side, and the Ukrainian side – the remaining $ 2.08 million.. In the future, when fulfilling export contracts, both companies, according to the terms of the agreement, will equally divide the amount of $ 2.5 million for each repaired helicopter.
A new maintenance and repair center will be created in Ankara, the capital of Turkey, to work on Turkish helicopters and potentially foreign platforms. Tests of spare parts and engines in Ukraine will be carried out by the engine manufacturer "Motor Sich".
D. Balikchi said that the share of his group in maintenance work will gradually increase as it begins to produce spare parts. The Association hopes to win tenders for the repair of about 1,500 Mi-17 helicopters that are used in neighboring countries, primarily in the Middle East and Asia. It is expected that the next contracts within the framework of the Turkish-Ukrainian partnership can be concluded with Libya, Pakistan and Azerbaijan.
The manager added that his association also intends to become a repair and maintenance center for Mi-8 and Mi-24 helicopters in the future.
There is no information yet about the position of the Russian Helicopters holding company under the Ukrainian-Turkish agreement on the MRO of Mi-17 helicopters.
