Russian Helicopters won an international tender and signed a contract with Balochistan provincial government to supply a Mi-171 helicopter. The helicopter is expected to be delivered in the first part of 2017. The government of Balochistan will use its first Mi-171 for transporting passengers and cargo, and emergency response. According to Russia Helicopters, the Mi-17-type helicopter was chosen for Balochistan due to “its proven reliability and efficiency in a wide variety of climates, ability to store without a hangar, ease of maintenance and operation in areas with limited development of ground infrastructure”. The Mi-17-type helicopters are produced at Russian Helicopters’ Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant and Kazan Helicopter Plant. As of 2014, more than 12,000 units have been made, which is a world record for twin-engine helicopters. They were delivered to more than 100 countries and their total flight time totals about 100 million hours.

By Frédéric Vergnères