zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Beyond Cars
/
Meet Russia's New High-Speed Helicopter Testbed
Meet Russia's New High-Speed Helicopter Testbed-July 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:14:15

Russia has created a highly modified dubbed the “Prospective Speedy Helicopter” Demonstrator, or Demonstrator PSV. This testbed aircraft aims to take Russian helicopter technology to the next level when it comes to both kinetic performance and avionics.

The unique chopper took its first flight on December 23 out of Russian helicopter giant MIL’s plant near Moscow. Designers used the Mi-24K Hind as a starting point for developing this new experimental aircraft, turning the two pilot attack helicopter into a single pilot technology demonstrator.

Multiple technologies will be flown on the PSV, including new rotor blade designs and avionics. Today, the PSV is equipped with rotor blades that have curved tips that aim to improve speed and stability at higher speeds. It also has the sameengines found in Russia’s most advanced attack helicopters, the KA-50/52 Black Shark/Alligator and. Each of its two engines puts out 2,400 horsepower.

Iraq's first Mi-28 Havoc 'Night Hunter' attack chopper has taken flight in Iraq. These are some of…

The aim is for the the PSV to increase cruising speed by 30 percent over the standard Mi-24/35 Hind, achieving 193-194 kts compared to 143 kts on standard models. Top speed is also an area where MIL hopes this new technology demonstrator will show large improvements, with hopes that it will reach a top speed of a whopping 216 kts compared to 180 kts on current models. A 30 percent increase in climb rate is also one of the PSV’s goals.

If these new rotors prove their worth, MIL can install them on their Mi-28 attack helicopters (pictured below) starting around 2018, which should increase the helicopter’s cruising and top speed by 10 and 13 percent.

Similar rotors could also be fitted to and Mi-24/35 helicopters, which have been produced in huge numbers over nearly half a century an continue to be built today. Curved rotor tips also are known to decrease the audible output of a rotor system, although it is unclear if this is one of MIL’s aims with their PSV testbed.

Russia's equivalent to Marine One is an updated version of the tried and true Russian rotary-wing…

A new avionics concept is also being tested aboard this unique helo, including a modular avionics concept with open architecture developed by the Russian electronics firm KERT. This system could be adapted to a whole slew of Russian helicopters, both old and new, and would make future upgrades and enhancements much easier than with current avionics systems used by Russian helicopters. KERT also claims it will improve flight safety and drastically decrease manufacturing costs.

Although this technology demonstrator is a start, and will be a surrogate for reasonable upgrades of existing Russian helicopters, it will not achieve a drastic leap in performance that the Ministry of Defense is looking for. As such, it is supposedly the first step in a more ambitious and long-term project to see helicopter speeds jump dramatically. This will require Russia’s helicopter firms, namely MIL and Kamov, to come up with pusher-prop or tilt-rotor technology similar to what is utilized on the Sikorsky and Bell , or some other exotic design concept.

Sikorsky’s exotic S-97 coaxial rotor and pusher-prop scout and light attack helicopter took to the…

All this requires quite a bit of money, and although Russia’s helicopter exports are substantial, the country’s Ministry of Defense will have to come up with the cash., plunging oil prices, and its deepening involvement in Syria, this is doubtful.

Russia may be coming to the realization that developing a high-tech weapon system is not the same…

If the Ministry of Defense comes to the conclusion that a more ambitious high-speed helicopter project is not economically feasible in the near term, the PSV demonstrator may become more valuable than ever envisioned. It can buy Russia time by introducing smaller improvements in existing helicopter then developing an entirely new high-speed helicopter configuration. Plus, the less ambitious technologies it proves can be easily and most likely economically exported to users of Russian helicopters around the globe.

A special thanks to aviation photographer Timofey Nikishin for sharing his outstanding photos with us for this piece. Make sure to check out his work at and , there are some amazing shots in his portfolio that are well worth the click.

Contact the author at .

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Beyond Cars
Crystal Chunks Are Bursting Through The Road In China
Crystal Chunks Are Bursting Through The Road In China
A video of what looks like quartz breaking through the surface of a is making the rounds on . I don’t get over there much, being suspicious of the Chinese over concerns of it spying on its users, as the reports. OK, fine. Actually, I just don’t get the humor...
Jul 8, 2025
2023 Zero DSR/X: The Bike Of The Future, But Not Our Future
2023 Zero DSR/X: The Bike Of The Future, But Not Our Future
The world, in 2023, is cyberpunk. We’ve got the , the , and the that keeps the and the . But in cyberpunk media, people are always riding . Why are we stuck with the same bikes we’ve always had? , it seems, wants to address this grievous wrong....
Jul 8, 2025
Aircraft Touch Tips During Blizzard At Japanese Airport
Aircraft Touch Tips During Blizzard At Japanese Airport
As at , its port side wing the starboard vertical stabilizer of bound for Hong Kong. This comes at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, and . “Our aircraft, which was stationary at the time with no customers nor crew onboard, was struck by a Korean Air A330 which was taxiing past,”...
Jul 8, 2025
Marshmallow Treats Ended Up On The Royal Air Force's No-Fly List
Marshmallow Treats Ended Up On The Royal Air Force's No-Fly List
Over in the United Kingdom, there’s a certain dessert known as a “teacake” — or, as a British friend kindly informed me, it’s more accurately known as a “Tunnock” in Scotland. Basically, the food in question for this particular story are actually a cookie base topped with marshmallow, coated...
Jul 8, 2025
String Of Boeing Failures Continues With 737-800 Flight Turning Back With Cracked Cockpit Windshield
String Of Boeing Failures Continues With 737-800 Flight Turning Back With Cracked Cockpit Windshield
In the wake of recent major , including , , and the debacle that was , it isn’t a good time for further failures by the company. that would , an unrelated 737-800 with a cracked windshield, became international news this weekend. The flight took off from Sapporo-New Chitose...
Jul 8, 2025
Deadliest Train In America Kills 3 People In 2 Separate Collisions At The Same Crossing
Deadliest Train In America Kills 3 People In 2 Separate Collisions At The Same Crossing
operate between Orlando and Miami and hold the unwelcome distinction of being both the first intra-city high speed rail in the U.S. and the , by far. After three people died at a single grade crossing in two separate incidents last week it seems the feds are finally perking...
Jul 8, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved