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Russian Helicopters plan to supply to China heavy helicopter on Mi-26 base — CEO

Alexander Mikheyev, head of the Russian Helicopters company, says this will be an absolutely new helicopter

MOSCOW, May 22. /ITAR-TASS/. The Russian Helicopters company this year will deveopl the design of the helicopter that will be supplied to China, Alexander Mikheyev, director of Russian Helicopters, told reporters on Thursday at the HeliRussia 2014 exhibition.

Negotiations with the Chinese partners on the status of the helicopter are planned for 2014, Mikheyev noted.

“Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant is expected to be engaged in the project. The Mil Mi-26 helicopter will be taken as the base platform. The aircraft will presumably have the name Advanced Height Helicopter (AHH). It will be an absolutely new helicopter,” the holding director said.

The Russian Helicopters head said that as the program advances the establishment of joint production with the Chinese side may also be considered.

“If there is interest in the helicopter inthe Russian market, the supplies will also be provided,” Mikheyev noted. He added that this issue had been discussed “during the Russian president’s visit to Shanghai.” “The sides exchanged views at the level of the two countries’ premiers,” Mikheyev said.

The creation of a heavy helicopter is being carried out from square one, for civil and military aviation. The new aircraft is expected to surpass in tonnage the existing Mi-26 helicopter of this type with the maximum carrying capacity of 28 tons by almost three times.

According to evaluated data, in 2013, Beijing bought Russian armaments and military equipment worth more than 1.8 billion rubles, taking the fourth place in terms of the purchase of Russian military products. According to a summary of the Russian Center for Analysis of World Arms Trade (CAWAT), in 2013, the volume of Russia’s military export to China accounted for $1.3 billion against $1.2 billion dollars in 2012. The largest implemented contracts in the military-technical cooperation sphere are the supplies of aviation engines, as well as helicopter equipment. In accordance with the contract of 2012 between China’s Poly Technologies and Russia’s arms exporter Rosoboronexport, the company Russian Helicopters is to supply to China 52 Mil Mi-171E helicopters. Russia and China conduct technical negotiations in the supply of the Sukhoi Su-35 planes to China.