Russian Air Force Mi - 26. Mi - 26 - Soviet multipurpose heavy transport helicopter

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• published: 09 May 2016
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The Mil Mi-26 (Russian: Миль Ми-26, NATO reporting name: Halo), given the product code izdeliye 90, is a Soviet/Russian heavy transport helicopter. Operated by both military and civilian operators, it is the largest and most powerful helicopter to have gone into series production. Following the incomplete development of the heavier Mil Mi-12 (prototypes known as Mil V-12) in the early 1970s, work began on a new heavy-lift helicopter, designated as the Izdeliye 90 ("Project 90")[2] and later allocated designation Mi-26. The new design was required to have an empty weight less than half its maximum takeoff weight.[3] The helicopter was designed by Marat Tishchenko, protégé of Mikhail Mil, founder of the OKB-329 design bureau.[4] The Mi-26 was designed to replace earlier Mi-6 and Mi-12 heavy lift helicopters and act as a heavy-lift helicopter for military and civil use, having twice the cabin space and payload of the Mi-6, then the world's largest and fastest production helicopter. The primary purpose of the Mi-26 was to transport military equipment such as the 13 metric ton (29,000 lb) amphibious armored personnel carriers and mobile ballistic missiles to remote locations after delivery by military transport planes such as the Antonov An-22 or Ilyushin Il-76. The first Mi-26 flew on 14 December 1977[5] and the first production aircraft was rolled out on 4 October 1980.[2] Development was completed in 1983 and by 1985, the Mi-26 was in Soviet military and commercial service.[3] The Mi-26 was the first factory-equipped helicopter with a single, eight-blade main lift rotor. It is capable of flight in the event of power loss by one engine (depending on aircraft mission weight) thanks to an engine load sharing system. While it is only slightly heavier than the Mi-6, the Mi-26 can lift up to 20 metric tons (44,000 lb). It is the second largest and heaviest helicopter ever constructed, after the experimental V-12. The tail rotor has about the same rotor diameter and thrust of the four-bladed MD 500 main rotor.[6] The Mi-26's unique main gearbox is relatively light at 3,639 kg (8,022.62 lb)[7] but can absorb 19,725 shp, which was accomplished using a non-planetary, split-torque design with quill shafts for torque equalization.[8] The Mil Design Bureau designed the VR-26 transmission itself due to the Mil's normal gearbox supplier admitting that such a gearbox could not be designed, .[9] The gearbox housing is stamped aluminum.[7] A split-torque design is also used for the 12,500 lb (5,670 kg) gearbox on the three-engine CH-53K.[10] As of 2013, the Mi-26 still holds the FAI record of greatest mass lifted to 2,000 metres - it lifted 56,768.8 kg in 1982.[11] In July 2010 a proposed Russian-Chinese development of a 33-ton heavy-lift helicopter was announced.[12] Rostvertol, the Russian helicopter manufacturer is in the process of refurbishing and upgrading the entire fleet of Mi-26s serving in the Russian Air Force. The fleet is estimated to be around 20 helicopters. The upgraded aircraft will be comparable to a new variant, the Mi-26T. Contract completion is planned for 2015. The contract also covers the production of 22 new Mi-26T helicopters. Eight new-built helicopters were delivered to operational units by January 2012.[13] Under the 2010 contract, 17 new-production helicopters have been delivered through 2014.[14] Buran Programme[edit] The developers of the Buran space vehicle programme considered using a couple of Mi-26 helicopters to "bundle" lift components for the Buran spacecraft, but test flights with a mock-up showed how risky and impractical that was.[15] Chernobyl Accident[edit] The Mi-26S was a disaster response version hastily developed during the containment efforts of the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986.[16] Thirty Mi-26 were used for radiation measurements and precision drops of insulating material to cover the damaged No. 4 reactor. It was also equipped with a deactivating liquid tank and underbelly spraying apparatus. The Mi-26S was operated in immediate proximity to the nuclear reactor, with a filter system and protective screens mounted in the cabin to protect the crew during delivery of construction materials to the most highly contaminated areas.[17] World Team Skydiving[edit] For three weeks in September 1996, the Russian military loaned four fully crewed Mil Mi-26 helicopters and granted the use of its Anapa airbase to the World Team for its skydiving free fall formation world record attempt. The World Team was made up of top-tier skydivers from over 40 countries and led by Hollywood aerial stunt performer B. J. Worth. With the goal of setting a new 300-way free fall formation record and using the high altitude and high capacity performance of the Mi-26, the World Team quickly flew 300 participants, plus aerial judges, photographers, and cinematographers up to 6,700 metres (22,000 ft), then simultaneously dropped them in a tight formation.