Training sessions were held in the Krasnoyarsky krai on the descent from the Mi-8 helicopter

During the federal training camp at the Shushenskoye Airport in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, the parachute firefighting service’s instructor staff trained in parachute-less descent of the Mi-8MTV-1 helicopter, the press service of the Russian Helicopters holding said.

The federal training camp is the start of the reserve of parachute firefighters and paratrooper firefighters for the fire season. The aerial training programme included parachute-less descents from the Mi-8MTV-1 helicopter using the KS-K descent device as well as the SLG-300 cargo winch. These complex descents are performed in the helicopter’s hover mode, provided the aircraft is equipped with the necessary equipment and specialists have special training.

Mi-8MTV-1 helicopters are traditionally used for firefighting, search and rescue missions, medical evacuation of casualties and other types of aviation operations. Mi-8MTV-1 helicopters delivered by the holding for Avialesokhrana are equipped with a cargo winch and a spillway device VSU-5A for extinguishing or localizing fires. A total of six Mi-8MTV-1 helicopters were manufactured by Russian Helicopters and delivered to Avialesokhrana between 2021 and 2022. Today they form the backbone of the agency’s air fleet.

«In 2022, four Mi-8MTV-1 helicopters supplied by Russian Helicopters were used during the fire season. Of these, three aircraft helped extinguish fires in Yakutia, and one helicopter was used in Lake Baikal. All six Mi-8MTV-1s are ready for service in 2023. They are now in Krasnoyarsk and will be dispersed across Siberia and the Far East at the start of the fire season. We expect the indicators to improve, given that last year, thanks to a range of measures, including new helicopters, the area of fires in Yakutia decreased 13-fold,» said Dmitry Selin, Acting Head of the FBU Avialesokhrana.

The Mi-8MTV-1 helicopters delivered to Avialesokhrana are equipped with additional external and internal fuel tanks, which increases their flight range. The machines are equipped with an external sling to carry large-size cargo weighing up to 4 tons, as well as an onboard boom with a winch, mooring equipment for transporting cargo inside the cabin, and searchlights. The helicopters are equipped with 22 landing seats.