Two Mil Mi-8MTV-5-1 (NATO reporting name: Hip) military transport helicopters will be delivered to Russia’s base in Kyrgyzstan, the Defense Ministry’s press office said.

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 A Russian Mi-8MTV-5-1 showcased at MAKS 2017 (Picture source: Air Recognition)

“By the end of June 2020, the airbase will get two upgraded Mi-8MTV-5-1 helicopters with an onboard defensive aids suite,” the press office said.

“The helicopter’s cabin is furnished with lighting equipment, which allows using night-vision goggles to perform flights at night at low and extremely low altitudes and take off from and land onto unmarked sites,” the press office added.

The pilots underwent theoretical and practical training at the army aviation combat training and conversion center in the Tver Region in central Russia.

The new helicopters will replace obsolete ones in service with the base.

Russia’s Kant airbase is an element of the collective rapid reaction forces of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) and ensures security of the airspace of CSTO member-states. The airbase operates Sukhoi Su-25 (Frogfoot) attack planes and Mi-8 helicopters.

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