The pilots of the Ka-52 Alligator attack helicopter, shot down during a special operation in Ukraine, were able to eject from a rotorcraft for the first time in the world. The helicopter pilots were not injured and, having landed, engaged in battle with the enemy.
According to Vesti: Primorye, a unique episode in combat practice occurred with the servicemen of the 319th separate helicopter regiment.
In mid-March, the crew of Major Roman Kobts and Captain Ivan Boldyrev flew to cover ground troops. The Ka-52 was shot down by fire from the ground and then the pilots, for the first time in world practice, left the car with the help of a jet-ejection system. On the ground, the pilots engaged in a battle with the nationalists, and were rescued by an evacuation group.
The problem of creating jet-parachute rescue equipment for helicopter crews in the USSR began to be dealt with in 1972. For the first time, the K-37-800 jet ejection seats were installed on the Ka-50 prototype helicopter in the late 80s. Before ejection, at the command of the pilot, the rotor blades were fired with the help of pyropatrons. After a fraction of a second, the roof of the cockpit was shot off, then the pilot's seat was fired with the help of a tow rocket. And only after that the rescue parachute was opened.
Until recently, the K-37-800 jet-ejection seats were used only in tests. Now the Russian pilots have tested them in battle.
Nikolay Grishchenko
