Rostvertol Shows Western interoperable 'Hind'

Round-the-clock all-weather combat capabilities with Russian or western weapons are being offered by Russia's Rostvertol company at Le Bourget for the well-tried Mil Mi-24 and export Mi-35 "Hind" attack helicopter from various degrees of upgrade.

Around half of the 3,000 or more rugged Mi-24 series built since 1969 for more than 20 countries world-wide are estimated to remain in service, and with new avionics and systems, can operate with improved effectiveness for another decade or more.

Mil's Mi-35M displayed statically in Paris incorporates most of several "Hind" upgrade options offered by Rostvertol on a pick-and-mix basis. Of these, the most obvious are airframe improvements to reduce weight and increased performance, mainly from installation of the new Mi-28 "Hind" successor's five-bladed glass-fiber main rotor, X-type tail rotor, plus uprated 2,400 shp Klimov TV3-117MA-SB3 (VK-2500) powerplants and transmission. Weight savings of some 660-pounds are also achieved by shortened stub wings, and by using a fixed rather than retractable landing gear.

Key to the new capabilities, however, are the KNEI-24 NATO-standard 1553B digital mission system avionics, also based on the Mi-28 package, for which a range of options are being offered. The rear pilot's cockpit has two new Russkaya Avionika twin-color multi-function screens for flight, ground-mapping, and sensor displays, from mission computer and sensor inputs, while retaining electro-mechanical stand-by instrumentation. A new UOMZ gyro-stabilized GOES 342 sensor turret beneath the nose integrates variable field-of-view infrared, TV and laser inputs through the mission computer for the cockpit displays, which include a large single screen in the forward weapons-operator position. This also incorporates steering controls, via the Raduga guidance antenna flanking the twin-barreled 23mm GSh-23 cannon chin-turret, or similar western armament, shown alongside, for Russian 9K113M Ataka and western anti-tank missiles.

Radio navigation equipment includes TACAN and GPS, and the cockpit is equipped for Skosok NVG-1 night-vision goggles. Further upgrade options include airframe, systems and equipment life extensions; fire-control automation; advanced R-999 communications radios; and a new observation-sight system.

Flight-testing of the Russian digital avionics package started in an otherwise unmodified Mi-24VM in 1999. Similar avionics are combined with airframe and powerplant upgrades in the Mi-35M, soon to begin flight trials, although the Mi-28 rotors, engines, transmission and airframe weight reduction changes have been flown on the Mi-24 for several years.