Russian Helicopters JSC, part of Russia’s state aerospace and defense conglomerate Rostec, has signed a deal with the country’s Defense Ministry for the design and production of Ka-52M helicopters for the navy until 2023, the holding’s CEO Andrey Boginsky told Sputnik.
“This year we have signed a contract to continue the R&D for the navy version of the Ka-52M. The work is underway, and it should be completed in 2023. We are now communicating with the naval aviation on the standardization of the sea version and the land version, “Boginsky said.
He that, as part of the previous R&D, Russian Helicopters JSC had already built four models of the Ka-52 helicopter, which noted test-landings on the deck of the Russian Navy ships.
“Now our task is to ‘unify’ the future Ka-52KM with the land version and test it together with the carriers,” Boginsky said.
Helicopters of the Ka-52 type are expected to be primarily based on the Project 23900 universal amphibious assault ships and helicopter carriers, which are currently under construction at the shipyard in Kerch, Crimea.
Earlier, as EurAsian Times reported, the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC) Director said that Moscow plans to deliver foreign customers with various helicopters worth over $ 1 billion in 2021.
“In 2021, it is planned to export Russian helicopter equipment worth over $ 1 billion,” Dmitry Shugaev said. He noted that Russia offers the world market a line of helicopters of all main classes, which allows meeting the needs of almost any customer.
“These are the newest attack helicopters Mi-28NE and Ka-52, various military transport helicopters of the Mi-8/17 series, heavy helicopters Mi-26, transport helicopters Mi-38, light multipurpose helicopters Ka-226 and other high-quality machines, “he said.
India-Russia Deal On Ka-226 Helicopters
Dmitry Shugayev had also stated that the negotiations on the supply and launch of licensed production of Ka-226T multirole helicopters in India have been delayed due to the latter’s requirements on the degree of domestic production.
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The official hopes that updated proposals prepared by the shareholders of the joint venture will satisfy the Indian defense ministry, paving the way for talks on the contract.
The talks on the supply and site of production of 200 Ka-226Ts in India have been underway since 2015. Moscow is expected to supply New Delhi with 60 helicopters, and 140 others are set to be assembled in India.
The process has also been delayed due to the need to streamline certain local production issues in India in developing such “advanced and complex hardware,” according to the FSVTS.
