Azerbaijan receives final Mi-35M assault helo

The last of 24 new Mil Mi-35M 'Hind' assault helicopters for Azerbaijan has been delivered to Baku, national media reported on 21 January 2014.

These latest-variant 'Hind' helicopters were ordered in September 2010 to augment the 20 Mi-24 helicopters that Azerbaijan has operated since the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991. An unspecified number of these earlier Mi-24s have been made NATO-compatible and upgraded to Mi-24G Super 'Hind' standard (the G denotes the Azeri word for night - 'Gecæ') by South African company Advanced Technologies and Engineering (ATE) and Ukrainian company Aviakon at the latter's aircraft repair plant in Konotop.

The Azerbaijani Air Force and Air Defence Force currently operate Mi-24s out of Baku Kala base. While there has been confusion as to the operating agency for the Mi-35s, the Azeri-Press Agency (APA) that reported the completion of deliveries said they are to be fielded by the State Border Service.

Purchased at a price of USD360 million, the helicopters are equipped with night vision goggles, a turret-mounted IRTV-445MGH infrared TV thermal imaging system and new countermeasures equipment. The weapons package is understood to comprise 9K114 Shturm-V (AT-6 'Spiral') anti-tank missiles, 80 mm S-8 and 240 mm S-24 unguided rockets, as well as either a single 12.7 mm 9-A-629 machine gun or two 7.62 mm 9-A-622 machine guns/one 30 mm 9-A-800 grenade launcher. In addition, they can operate with 50 kg (110 lb) to 500 kg (1,100 lb) bombs.

In addition to the 'Hind'-variant helicopters, the Azerbaijani Air Force and Air Defence Force also operates 40 Mi-8 'Hip' transport helicopters, which double as light attack and assault platforms. Other rotary-winged assets in service with the air force comprise the Mi-2 'Hoplite' utility helicopter, and the Kamov Ka-32A utility and Ka-32PS search-and-rescue helicopters.

ANN.Az