MOSCOW, January 31. /TASS/. Production of reconnaissance and combat helicopters Ka-52 Alligator will be doubled this year to meet export demand, the press-service of the Helicopters of Russia holding company said on Tuesday.

Last year the company’s chief at that time, Aleksandr Mikheyev, said that Russia had signed a contract with Egypt for providing 46 Ka-52 Alligator helicopters. Later the company said that export supplies were scheduled to begin in 2017.

"In 2017 the production will go up more than 100% as work has begun under a foreign contract. The first helicopter for the foreign customer has been assembled and is undergoing routine testing," the report said.

The reconnaissance and combat helicopter Ka-52 Alligator has been batch-produced for the Russian Defense Ministry since 2010. It is meant for destroying tanks, other armored and non-armored vehicles, manpower, helicopters and other aircraft of the enemy on the frontline and within a tactical range in any weather round the clock.

The Ka-52 boasts advanced avionics and powerful armaments that can be reconfigured to suit different combat tasks. The coaxial air screws and enhanced longitudinal control capabilities allow for effective and complex aerobatics maneuvers. Also, the Ka-52 has an advanced radio-electronic protection system and stealth technologies that disperse or distort the engines’ thermodynamic trail and active protection means.