Military Ka-60 ahead of the development of civil Ka-62
The development of a new medium helicopter OKB im. Kamov - Ka-60 / 62 - is gaining momentum thanks to military orders and government subsidies. The Helicopters of Russia holding and the Kamov company are simultaneously developing the Ka-60 military transport helicopter and its civilian version, the Ka-62. The latter has a maximum take-off weight of 6500 kg (14300 pounds) and can carry 12-15 passengers at speeds of 290 km / h over a distance of 750 km (460 miles).
The development of this type of helicopter was launched at the end of the 1980-x, the first prototype flew in the 1998 year. The helicopter is capable of carrying a payload of 2500 kg, and is intended to fill the gap between the Ka-226 light helicopter and the Ka-32 and Mi-8 / 17 machines.
Unlike other Kamov models, the new twin-engine helicopter was developed in accordance with the classical scheme with a five-blade main rotor and a fenestron tail rotor. According to the developers, the blades and more than half the mass of the fuselage are made of composite materials. Currently, there is only one flight prototype equipped with Saturn turboshaft RD-600 1300 horsepower. The second prototype was lost during the accident near Moscow in June 2010 of the year.
Currently, two new prototypes are being produced, which will join the flight test program later this year. Another helicopter will be built in 2012 year. The new prototypes are likely to differ from the base more streamlined fuselage and improved tail rotor control system. Another difference is the installation of the new Ardiden 3G 1680 hp engine. French company Turbomeca. The holding purchased the first batch of 40 engines of this type, which should be delivered in the 2014 year. The contract was concluded in April of this year. In total, Russia plans to purchase 308 of such engines, which will also be installed on helicopters of the military version.
According to the results of the internal tender, the French theaters won their Russian competitors "in all key indicators," said Dmitry Petrov, director general of the Russian Helicopters holding company. Earlier, Russian manufacturers planned to install French engines only on civilian helicopters, while the military had to be equipped with RD-600В. “Now the Russian military has become more open to the use of foreign equipment,” said Petrov.
Improved prototypes Ka-60/62 will receive a new “glass cabin” manufactured by the St. Petersburg company Transas-Aviation". This cabin received the designation KVO-62, is equipped with two TDS-12 displays with a diameter of 12,1 inches and two TDS-84s with a size of 8,4 inches with LED backlight, there are other modern equipment, in particular, the GLONASS / GPS satellite navigation system, obstacle warning system, on-board computers. The basic package of equipment weighs 19,5 kg. The same avionics package can be installed on Ka-226T helicopters, which have a dashboard of the same area. Ka-226T participates in the Indian tender for the purchase of 197 light helicopters and, at the request of the customer, can be equipped with a different set of avionics.
Serial production of the military version of the Ka-62 is scheduled to begin with the 2015 year. Production of helicopters will be organized at the Progress plant in Arsenyev. The development of a heavy transport helicopter Mi-38 is also under way, funding is also being provided from the federal budget. The prototype is in flight testing.
According to Petrov, the civilian version of the Ka-62 will be certified according to Russian and European standards in 2015-2016. The holding does not have orders for this option yet, but hopes that the helicopter, equipped with a foreign engine with a well-established after-sales service system, will find demand among commercial operators.
Information