Russia has delivered the last of 63 Mil Mi-17 transport helicopter purchased by the US Defense Department on behalf of the Afghan National Army.
Russian Helicopters announced in had met the milestone in October. The US Defense Department signed a contract in 2011 with Rosoboronexport, , the Russian state-owned company that brokers the country’s military imports and exports, for the Mil Mi-17 helicopters.
“Helicopters such as Mi-17 scored well when operating in harsh climatic conditions and use in the highlands,” says a statement from Rosoboronexport that was translated from Russian.
Delivery of the aircraft continued through a volatile period in US-Russian relations. The deal was assailed in the US Congress because of Russia’s support of the Bashar Assad regime in the Syrian civil war and Russia's annexation of Crimea following political unrest in Ukraine.
The Russian Federal Service of Military-Technical Cooperation says it is willing to assist with future helicopter deliveries to the Afghan National Army and to perform maintenance on those already in service.
The United States already has paid for the Afghan army to receive another 82 aircraft in the ongoing effort to train and equip the force prior to the planned US withdrawal that has been pushed from 2014 into the following year.
Embraer in September delivered the first of 20 A-29 Super Tucano light attack aircraft under the light air support (LAS) programme designed to provide US allies with an anti-insurgency fighter. The $427 million contract is for 20 aircraft that will first deliver to the USAF and then to Afghan security forces once a cadre of pilots is trained on US soil.
The contract includes aircraft and ground training devices, spare parts, flight simulators contract logistics support provided by Sierra Nevada Corp., which is the prime contractor for the programme.
The United States also has paid for 62 MD Helicopters MD-530 civilian aircraft.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
