Russian Helicopters announced it has signed maintenance deals to repair Mi-35M helicopters belonging to the Brazilian Air Force. The deals were originally signed in November and December 2020 with Industria de Aviacao e Servisos (IAS), an authorised company of the Brazilian Air Force. In accordance with contracts, Russian Helicopters will supply repair and maintenance complexes for parts that will be repaired in Brazil, and a range of new parts. The company will also repair some parts in Russia. Besides, specialists from National Helicopter Center Мil & Kamov will extend time between overhauls for Mi-35M helicopters on an individual basis. Helicopters will be repaired at the IAS service centre established as part of Russia’s offset obligations under the contract for supplying 12 Mi-35M helicopters to Brazil.
“This project is of special importance for us, and we are ready to implement it. I am convinced that our partners from Brazil will be able to tackle some technical issues quickly to start the work. For instance, we expect that IAS will sign five supplementary agreements and send to us the lists of parts for replacement or repair in Russia, approved by Brazilian Air Force. We cannot start production and assembly of property and parts necessary for overhaul without these documents,” said the director general of Russian Helicopters holding company Andrey Boginsky.
In 2018, Romulo Amaral, squadron leader, commander of the eighth squadron of the Second Air Army of Brazilian Air Force, gave an interview to Russian Helicopters’ magazine and emphasised that Mi-35M helicopters are very reliable and capable of performing tasks even in the most difficult climatic conditions. “Adaptation of Russian helicopters to the conditions of Amazonia was successful, and despite differences in climate of Brazil and Russia, there were minimal changes. The helicopter proved to be very reliable: this is the most important thing for aircraft created for military purposes. Amazonia provides opportunities for demonstrating a versatile nature of the rotorcraft to a maximum extent. This is due to the fact that it does not require a special runway: the rotorcraft is capable of landing on any solid ground, in remote regions, with a minimum number of infrastructure facilities on the ground, and in any weather conditions, constantly ensuring covering force,” said Amaral.
The Mi-35M is the world’s only universal attack helicopter, which, in addition to effective performance of fire missions, is able to transport up to eight soldiers with weapons, up to 1,500kg of ammunition or other cargo inside the cabin, and up to 2,400kg of cargo on an external sling; evacuate those who are wounded; deliver technical staff to autonomous deploying sites. Due to the fact that the helicopter can be used for military purposes 24/7 in any weather conditions, it can perform combat tasks related to aviation support of ground forces accordingly. The helicopter demonstrates impressive high-altitude performance and is able to take off and land on concrete and ground sites located at altitudes up to 4,000 m above sea level. In addition, effective design solutions in Mi-35 allow using this Russian helicopter in many physiographic regions and climates, including in the mountains, and at temperatures from -50°C to +50°C.
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