Helicopters [vertolet]

Mi-1 Hare Mi-2 Hoplite Mi-4 Hound Mi-6 Hook V-7 Mi-8 Hip Mi-10 Harke Mi-12 Homer Mi-14 Haze V-16 / Mi-12M Mi-17 Hip H Mi-18 Mi-22 project Mi-24 Hind Mi-25 Hind D Mi-26 Halo Mi-28 Havoc Mi-30 Vintoplan Mi-32 Mi-34 Mi-35 Hind Mi-36 Mi-38 Mi-40 Mi-42 Mi-44 Mi-46 Mi-52 Mi-54 Mi-58 Mi-60 Mi-171 Mi-172 Mi-X1 V-3 UHLH Aktai Ansat PAK-MV PAK-VV

Ka-8 Ka-10 Hat Ka-15 Hen Ka-18 Hog Ka-20 Harp Ka-22 Hoop Ka-25 Hormone Ka-26 Hoodlum Ka-27 Helix Ka-28 Helix Ka-29 Helix Ka-31 Ka-32 Helix Ka-34 Ka-35 Ka-40 Ka-50 Hokum Ka-52 Hokum B Ka-56 Wasp Ka-60 Kasatka Ka-62 Kasatka Ka-64 Sky Horse Ka-90 Ka-92 Ka-102 Ka-115 Moskvichka Ka-118 Ka-126 Hoodlum-B Ka-128 Ka-215 Ka-226 V-80 Hokum V-100 Yak-22 Yak-24 Horse Yak-100 Yak-60

In Russia, the first steps in the exploration and creation of practical helicopters were undertaken in 1912 by a disciple of NE Zhukovsky, later academician, head of the department of aerodynamics the Air Force Engineering Academy. NE Zhukovsky, and one of the leaders of TsAGI - Boris Nikolayevich Yuryev. He developed a science-based project system, capable of vertical rise into the air, to make flight and sit upright. BN Yuryev also proposed to put on a helicopter a swash plate that allowed the pilot to change the direction of the thrust of the main rotor.

Boris Yuryev was one of the pioneers of helicopter. Despite the fact that his name is not carried on any helicopter, he developed the theoretical basis and practical solutions that prepared the basis for domestic helicopters. At the initiative of Yuryev, in 1926 a helicopter group was organized in TsAGI. It developed a helicopter under the scheme. Proposed Yuriev. The scientists began research, as a result of which were elected to three of the most promising schemes: a single-rotor helicopter with tail rotor. As a result, the world's first such experimental helicopter was built to determine the characteristics of the rotor near the ground. This was the helicopter TsAGI 1-EA.

In 1930 the Section at TsAGI headed at the time by AM Cheremuhin, was commissioned to build the first Soviet helicopter. It must be said that this work was a state secret, and the students of the Academy, did not even know about this work, although both the creator of the helicopter - Yuriev and Cheremuhin - engaged with them. The world altitude record for a helicopter at that time was 18 meters. Therefore, the flights of the aircraft were held on a leash (in chains). The Soviet helicopter climbed to 3 - 4 meters and was unstable.

Nevertheless, on 14 August 1932 AM Cheremuhin climbed on it and reached a height of 605 meters. In the descent to the ground, something happened, and only the greatest self-control and good fortune saved the inventor from death. The flight, which had been prepared for three years, lasted 12 minutes. In this flight the world altitude record for helicopters was exceeded by 33.5 times. Subsequently, AM Cheremuhin returned to work on the creation of wind tunnels, and the last years of his life he was active in the OKB Tupolev.

All attempts to create a practical helicopter until the mid-1940s were unsuccessful. The helicopter proved to be much more science-intensive, the creation of these machines was only possible for experienced design teams. The 1920s and 1930s were a period of experiments in helicopter construction. In connection with the long period of experiments and searches, the autogyro (from the Greek "autos" - "self" and "gyros" - "circle, rotation") became the dominant type of rotorcraft in those years. The carrying screw of the gyroplane did not have a mechanical drive from the engine, but rotated in flight by itself under the influence of an oncoming airflow.

The first rotorcraft, autogyros A-4 designed by Vyacheslav Kuznetsov, entered the Red Army aviation in 1934.

I.P.Bratukhin was a rotary-wing engineer whose work dates back to 1925. During the 1930s, he developed the single-rotor configuration using various means for counteracting rotor torque. Before the start of the Great Patriotic War, the design bureau of the Moscow Aviation Institute under the direction of P. Bratukhin designed and constructed twin-screw autogyro "Omega". In 1941, the Omega I was flown. This was a two-place craft with lateral rotors mounted on outriggers. Two engines were also located outboard. These powerplants were M-11 radials, rated at about 140 hp.

This Omega I craft was reported in production. However, it appears it was never a successful design. He then designed in built autogyros "Omega-11" T-3 and T-4. The T-3 T-4 were transferred into production and produced in small batches. At the same time with the creation and study of autogyros, Kuznetsov, Skrzhinskiy, Kamov and Mil TsAGI were designing and constructing winged and wingless gyros, some of them were pretty high flight data. In particular, the gyro TsAGI A-12 in the tests developed a speed of horizontal flight up to 245 km / h and up to a height of 5570 m.

At the beginning of the Great Patriotic War squadron of military gyroplanes A-7-3a was established (the first production rotorcraft in the USSR) Nikolay Kamov design that was used in the Smolensk defensive battle. The engineer of this squadron was Mikhail Mil.

By the mid-1940s, there were prerequisites for the transition from experimental helicopters to helicopters for special purposes. The greatest success in those years was achieved by the design bureau of Ivan Bratukhin. In 1947, in Serpukhov, the first helicopter squadron was formed in the Air Force, equipped with multipurpose G-3 helicopters (the "Artillery Fire Corrector") for its development.

Unfortunately, helicopters of a two-screw transverse scheme were characterized by increased vibrations, the reason of which is the installation of the rotor screws on an elastic base. KB Bratukhin could not solve this problem, the aircraft were removed from service, and his OKB-4 design bureau was disbanded. The evolution of helicopters in the USSR returned to the classical scheme with one carrier and one steering screw. It is this scheme of the helicopter that currently dominates the world in helicopter construction.

Apart from a few autogyros and experimental helicopters, no rotary-wing aircraft entered production in the Soviet Union until the post-war years. In 1948, the Omega II appeared. The same rotor arrangement was used, but the craft was larger and aerodynamically cleaner than the first ver- sion. The Omega II car- ried a crew of two and six passengers. Two ASH- 21, 7-cylinder radial en- gines were used having a KAMOV Helicopter take-off rating of 750 hp. At least one was built, and it appears development was dropped.

As early as 1945, Mil, on his own initiative, was developing the experimental helicopter EG-1. It was a three-seater helicopter project of a classical single-screw scheme. The light multipurpose Mi-1 helicopter (the NATO codification Hare, with the English hare) was developed in the late 1940s in the Soyuznoye OKB-4 Minaviaproma (now the Moscow Helicopter Plant named after ML Mil), is a member of the holding company "Russian Helicopters") under the direction of the aircraft designer Mikhail Mil.

Then on December 12, 1947, the first helicopter design bureau was founded under the leadership of M. L. Mil. It was here that the first helicopter, the Mi-1 Hare, was designed. Less than a year later in October 1948, it is said to have made its maiden flight and three years later was shown to the world in the 1951 Tushino Air Show.

By the mid- to late-1950s, two different Mi-1 helicopter designs were operational in Frontal Aviation units. The small, lightly armed Mi-i Hare has now been largely forgotten; but despite its technological limitations it performed well as a small liaison craft for nearly a decade. The advent of turbine engines in American and French helicopters led to the demand for new designs incorporating this new technology.

The first flight of the turbine-engined Mi-2 Hoplite took place in Poland on August 26, 1965. While it would be unwise to be too critical of the Soviet practice of making proven equipment serve new purposes by "strapping on" new technology, the idea of the Hoplite serving as an attack helicopter seemed quite unlikely. It is more reasonable to assume that it would be used to transport squad-sized subunits at low altitude over surface obstacles, including nuclear contaminated zones. Polish marine infantry units, in fact, demonstrated the utility of the Mi-2 in landing airborne units on a coast in connection with amphibious maneuvers.

With each of the five ground armies in the Group of Soviet Forces in East Germany (GSFG) being supported by a regiment of Mi-2 Hoplites, one could postulate the existence of approximately 150 helicopters each capable of transporting eight-ten GSFG infrantrymen. At least theoretically, that was enough tactical airlift support for between 1,000 and 1,500 soldiers armed only with automatic rifles and light machine guns. Configured as a medical evacuation helicopter, the Mi-2 can carry four wounded on stretchers, one medical corpsman and equipment.

The first of the medium-sized helicopters to enter service with Frontal Aviation was the Mi-4 Hound. The second of the new turbine-powered helicopter to appear in Frontal Aviation was another Mil product, the Mi-8 Hip C. Designed as a replacement for the weary Hound, the Hip quickly proliferated throughout the military during the 1960s and also entered Aeroflot service in great numbers. Capable of transporting at least three rifle squads, it provides considerable tactical airlift capability. Twenty of these helicopters could, for example, transport an airborne battalion of approximately 550 men with light arms. Equipped with large rear clamshell doors, the Hip is said to be also able to transport small vehicles of approximately BRDM (BTR-40) or Uaz-69 bulk.

An East German milltary author points to the fact that the Mi-8 was proof that all capable general purpose helicopters can be armed. Automatic grenade launchers (up to 40mm) and a 12.7mm machine-gun with a range of 1,000-3,000 m for use against moving targets reclaimed for the Hip. In an air assault role, however, the Hip would undoubtedly be equipped with four standard 16- or 32-shot 57mm unguided rocket pods. Our East German author even points to the possibility of unguided rockets or guided missiles on side-mounted out-riggers which are intended for use in an anti-tank role. Moreover, each window in the Hip's transport section is also equipped with a device which the infantryman can use to support his weapon to fire at ground targets from the air. Apart from its obvious ability to support assault operations, its practical size and fine performance make the MI-8 an outstanding utility helicopter which found increasing utilization throughout the military forces of the Warsaw Pact.

The concept of the development of the Helicopters model range was given a conditional name Strategy 2020. It had been exactly five years since moment the President's Decree was issued November 29, 2004 for the formation of Oboronprom, under the auspices of which has now been formed by an integrated structure of enterprises helicopter-building, united by the management company of Russian Helicopters.

In April 2008, in the "Strategies development of helicopter-building activities Oboronprom for the period up to 2015" identified a range of models of helicopters of various purposes and payloads. However economic crises, shifting demand for helicopters relatively light class prompted the extension until 2020. Product design period under the main federal target programs, the Arms, The Civil aviation equipment" and FCP "Development of the defense industry" - demanded changes to the existing strategy. Its completion is now being finalized, and conference in general terms updated industry plans for 2020 civil and military spheres, conditionally divided into three time stages.

The first phase of the strategy is designed for 2009-2011 and is mainly related to the increase in the output of helicopters, which have already been developed in the Series. In the civil sector, today's heavy Mi-26T, mi-8 (Mi-17/171/172) and Ka-32, as well as the ansat and Ka-226. The military segment consists of a heavy Mi-26, the medium Mi-8MTV/AMTSH, Ka-27 (Ka-29, Ka-31), Mi-35M, Mi-28N and lightweight Ansat-U.

By the time the implementation begins (2012-2015) market potential of the current serial models it was planned to offer so-called "transitional" helicopters in the civilian equipment market. Mi-8M, Mi-38, Ka-62, Light Mi-34C2 and Ka-226T. Among the models development in the medium term military department, there are mid-range helicopters - the new Ka-60, Ka-52 and upgraded Mi-28NM. So far, the deterrent to the development of a number of them (e.g. Ka-60/62 and the Mi-38) was the absence of modern serial domestic engine of the necessary class of power. There are real solutions to this problem, and within the framework of the United Engine Corporation, also a subsidiary of Oboronprom, a program of development has been established serial production of the right class engines, in particular the RD-600B (for Ka-60/62) and TV7-117B (for Mi-38). At that time same time some models helicopters (e.g. Mi-34C2 and the Ka-226T) will be equipped foreign-made engines.

In the third phase (long-term perspective), implementation which is designed for a period of 2016-2020, several promising and very ambitious new civil and military projects. In the civil sector, heavy helicopters are proposed to implement the Russian-Ki program helicopter 30-ton Class - AHL. Middle class the bet is placed on a "promising high-speed helicopter" (now two themes are developing in this direction - Mi-X1 and Ka-92, however, it was planned to make a choice and continue the development of only one of them). Light helicopters will be two classes - 2.5 and 4.5 tonnes - perhaps in cooperation with foreign partners, but considering this and the available hit by such domestic projects, such as the Mi-44 and the Mi-54.

Military segment will include a modernized heavy transport Mi-26M, amphibious transport Mi-383 (development of the Mi-38 line), high-speed multi-purpose Ka-65 and so-called promising "strike helicopter complex." Work on special light manned helicopter for the military customers are not provided.