The aerospace forces of the Russian Federation received two new helicopter Mi-28NM "Night Hunter". This was announced by the general director of the holding "Russian Helicopters" Andrei Boginsky.
“Two cars have already been transferred to the Ministry of Defense today. They will be connected to the state joint tests, ”he said on the TV channel“ Star ”.
According to him, six more cars will be handed over to the military department in 2020.
Also, some new details of helicopter equipment, in particular, concerning its weapons - light multipurpose guided missile (LMUR) became known. According to the general designer of JSC "Moscow Helicopter Plant them. M.L. Mile ”by Vitaly Shcherbina, we are talking about the first in Russia multifunctional helicopter rocket of the air-to-air / air-to-surface class with a homing head.
- © Frame: TRC "Star"
As Shcherbina told on the TV channel, this rocket is capable of striking both ground targets, including military equipment, as well as underwater and surface objects. Another feature of it is the ability to act from long distances, which allows the crew of the vehicle to destroy targets, being outside the scope of any military air defense.
In addition, the Mi-28NM helicopter is equipped with the Chrysanthemum-M guided missile, which is by far the most powerful anti-tank weapon of this type in Russia. It is noted that the rocket is able to detect the enemy tank in the absence of visibility and can penetrate armor with a thickness of up to 1.2 m.
Earlier it was known that the Mi-28NM received a dual control complex, which allows the navigator / operator (controls armament) to fly a helicopter along with the commander in the event of a malfunction, injury or death of the pilot.
The crew will also have an improved radar, a new aiming, navigation and navigation system, upgraded engines, UAV communications equipment and a defense system with a laser defense station that protects the helicopter from hitting thermal missiles. Among other things, the car has a larger cabin and an armored glazing area.
Baptism in Syria
Mi-28 - an improved version of the attack helicopter Mi-24, which was adopted in 1971. In 1982, the first flight of the Mi-28. Later began upgrading the machine. As a result, the helicopter was able to perform tasks at night. The machine was given the designation Mi-28N.
In 2016, the Mi-28N received a baptism of fire in Syria, where these helicopters destroyed armored vehicles, manpower and fortified points of terrorists.
In June, it became known that the next stage of development of the model, the newest Mi-28NM, was successfully tested in the conditions of mountain and desert terrain in Syria. This was reported by the newspaper "Izvestia" with reference to the data of the Ministry of Defense of Russia.
The modification of the Mi-28NM appeared thanks to, among other things, the Syrian experience, said Alexey Leonkov, a military expert and editor of the Arsenal of the Fatherland magazine, in an interview with RT.
“In Syria, we flew Mi-28N, and in the course of their combat operation, a number of flaws were revealed, which the“ Russian Helicopters ”holding eliminated by making the car more perfect,” said the expert.
He clarified that the helicopter is able to conduct combat operations, both day and night, to use different types of weapons - anti-tank and anti-personnel.
“If you put air-to-air missiles on a helicopter, it can even fight with the potential enemy’s tactical aviation, primarily with attack aircraft,” he added.
Leonkov noted that the main difference between the new modification of the helicopter and the previous one is the complete digitalization of the machine. According to him, now the Mi-28NM is equipped with more modern front-view locators, and special radars of the so-called circular view or target detection station are installed above the machine’s screws.
“The airborne defense complex was built on the basis of the well-known EW complex called“ President-S ”, which allows us to divert several damaging elements from the helicopter: portable anti-aircraft missile systems, anti-aircraft guided missiles, thus saving the crew’s life and protecting the helicopter,” said the expert.
- © Frame: TRC "Star"
One hundred helicopters by 2028
In May, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that army aviation should be equipped as quickly as possible with modern airborne defense complexes with improved characteristics and equipped with the latest means of destruction of increased range. In particular, he told about plans to put in the army 100 modernized Mi-28NM combat helicopters by 2028.
According to the editor-in-chief of the magazine National Defense, director of the Center for Analysis of the World Trade in Arms (TsAMTO) Igor Korotchenko, the Mi-28NM is a modern Russian attack helicopter, which is capable of performing various combat missions with 100% target destruction on battlefield. As Korotchenko noted, first of all we are talking about armored vehicles.
“In particular, quite recently a test of a new guided missile took place, the introduction of which into the onboard armament of the Mi-28NM once again showed the advantages of this helicopter as a means capable of hitting absolutely any target in very difficult combat conditions, in radio electronic and optical-electronic countermeasures the enemy, but nevertheless the targets are amazed, ”Korotchenko noted.
He expressed confidence that the holding company Mi-28NM Russian Helicopters is the generally recognized leader of the helicopter segment of the world market. Korochenko recalled that the Mi-28 comes in dozens of countries. In addition, according to him, a large contract was recently signed with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation for the supply of this vehicle.
“Thus, Russia maintains parity with the main leading helicopter-building firms of the world for the production of these helicopters and is one of the leaders in this segment,” the expert concluded.