Russian Helicopters holding has announced the delivery of the first serial produced Mi-38. The helicopter, manufactured in a high-comfort cabin variant, was financed by Gazprombank Leasing company and would be operated by Russian Helicopter Systems (RHS).
Official delivery ceremony was held at Kazan Helicopters manufacturing facility and was attended by the President of the Republic of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov, Director General of the Russian Helicopters Andrei Boginsky and Director General of Kazan Helicopters Yuri Pustovgarov.
´The newest Mi-38 is a multi-purpose helicopter that would fill the niche between medium Mi-8 and heavy Mi-26 models. It can be used for transportation of cargo and passengers, search and rescue operations, and as a flying hospital or an offshore helicopter for delivering specialists to oil production platforms at sea. The first serial manufactured rotorcraft will be used for business-class transportation purposes.
We have already demonstrated this helicopter, with its highly comfortable cabin, to Russian and foreign countries leaders. The superior flight performance characteristics and competitive price guarantee that Mi-38 will find its place in Russian helicopter fleet, and our partners´ fleets in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Latin America and other regions´, said the Industrial Director of Rostec Aviation Cluster Anatoly Serdyukov.
´The delivery of the first serial Mi-38 is an important step, confirming that Kazan Helicopters is ready for serial manufacturing and delivery of this rotorcraft for both commercial and government operators. The forecast of potential buyers´ demand for Mi-38 by 2030 is more than 100 aircraft´, said the Director General of Russian Helicopters Andrei Boginsky.
A symbolic key to the new Mi-38 helicopter was handed to Mikhail Kazachkov, the CEO of RHS, by the Director General of Kazan Helicopters. During the delivery ceremony, the employees of Kazan Helicopters were awarded the title of Honoured Mechanical Engineers of the Republic of Tatarstan and also received honorary diplomas for their active participation in the production and significant contribution to development of Mi-38 helicopter. The first serial-manufactured Mi-38 was introduced to general public at International Aviation and Space Salon MAKS-2019, where it was also shown to the President of Russia Vladimir Putin and the President of Turkey Tayyip Recep Erdoğan. Then came the time for an international debut, at Dubai Airshow 2019, where the helicopter was presented to the Crown Prince of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
Mi-38 is a single-rotor helicopter, powered by two Russian-made TV7-117V engines, equipped with dust protection devices with a high degree of air purification. The rotorcraft fuselage main structural elements are made of aluminium alloys, individual components and parts are made of steel, titanium and composite materials. An advanced six-blade rotor with an anti-icing system provides high thrust and low vibration levels, the X-shaped tail rotor ensures excellent handling with low level of noise.
The new rotorcraft is equipped with a modern navigation and satellite systems, all information are provided by five versatile LCD colour screens. Mi-38 has a flight range of 1,200 kilometres (with additional fuel tanks) and can carry 5 tonnes of payload. The high-comfort cabin version was designed to carry up to ten passengers.
JSC “Russian Helicopters” / Rostec State Corporation press materials were used.
