Russian Helicopters is to repair a small number of Mil Mi-24P/35P (‘Hind’) combat helicopters in Myanmar, as part of an initiative to support platforms in the country of operation instead of transporting the aircraft to Russia.
The group said that it would send a team of technicians to Myanmar from this month to repair three of four Mil Mi-24 helicopters operated by the Myanmar Air Force (MAF). Russian Helicopters said that repair work on the first Mi-24 was recently completed at the company’s Aircraft Repair Plant 419 in St Petersburg.
As part of the support programme, Russian Helicopters added that it had delivered the accessories and spare parts to Myanmar required to locally repair the MAF’s Mi-24s, reducing the timeframe required to overhaul the aircraft.
Highlighting the significance of the MAF programme, Russian Helicopters’ deputy CEO for aftersales service, Igor Chechikov, said, “This contract is extremely important for us, as we are implementing a procedure of complete overhaul of military aircraft with on-site visits [from] group specialists to the client’s territory for the first time.”
Chechikov added, “Successful completion of works will lay the foundation for [the] further development of co-operation and [the] signing [of] new agreements with our partners in Myanmar.”
The contract to repair the aircraft was announced in June 2016, and followed a framework agreement in 2015 under which Russian Helicopters committed to expand collaboration with the Myanmar armed forces. Russian Helicopters regards these deals as potential precursors to additional contracts through which the firm will support localised maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) programmes.
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