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Kazakhstan Adds Russian-Made Fighters and Helicopters to Aircraft Fleet

By Gaukhar Erubaeva November 12, 2020

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SU-30SM is a multi-role fighter developed based on the Su-30MK combat aircraft family and equipped with advanced weapons and avionics. / Grigory Bedenko / informburo.kz

Kazakhstan received last week the next batch of Su-30SM multirole fighter — an aircraft manufactured by IRKUT which is a subsidiary of Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), the country’s defense ministry said on Friday.

Military officials in Kazakhstan are convinced that the Russia-made fighters will significantly bolster country’s military fleet.

“The Su-30SM aircraft will significantly increase the capabilities of covering troops and objects from air attacks, as well as detecting and destroying air and ground targets,” said Nurlan Ormanbetov, Commander-in-Chief of the Air Defense Forces of Kazakhstan, according to a report issued by the defense ministry.

The fighters developed by JSC Sukhoi Design Bureau left for Kazakhstan following the latest deal signed in 2018 between IRKUT and Kaspex – the third agreement signed between Moscow and Nur-Sultan on the supplies of the Su-30SM fighters. In total, Kazakhstan ordered 36 units of the SU-30SM fighters. The very first batch arrived in the country in 2015. 

Kazakh pilots have already been trained to use the new fighters, the ministry said.

SU-30SM is a multi-role fighter developed based on the Su-30MK combat aircraft family and equipped with advanced weapons and avionics. The Russian-made fighter can be deployed in counter-air strikes, counter-land and counter-sea missions. In addition, it is capable of conducting electronic counter-countermeasures and early warning tasks. The aircraft also acts as a command-and-control platform within a fleet of combat aircraft performing joint missions.

Along with Russia and Kazakhstan, fighters of this kind are used in Algeria, Belarus, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Venezuela, Vietnam and some other countries.

Last week, Russia’s state arms contractor Rostec delivered two Mi-8 multi-purpose helicopter knock-down kits to Kazakhstan.

According to the agreement signed in 2019, Russia will help Kazakhstan assemble choppers as well as launch a system for supporting the life cycle of helicopters and train engineering personnel. The document calls for Russia to deliver a total of 45 choppers by 2025. The first batch of 17 kits are expected to be delivered through 2022.

An aircraft repair plant based in the southeastern city of Almaty in Kazakhstan is where the work will be performed. In Russia, the Mi-8 helicopters are manufactured by the Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant operated by Russian Helicopters – a subsidiary of Rostec and engineering contractor.

Kazakhstan’s National Guard and the Committee for Emergency Situations are the main customers for the Mi-8 helicopters. When ready the choppers will be used for transporting passengers and goods, as well as will be engaged in activities related to emergency rescue operations, forest protection, firefighting, ambulance services and law enforcement operations.

“I’m confident that successful implementation of the semi-knock-down assembly project of Mi-8AMT / Mi-171 helicopters in Kazakhstan will become a significant step forward in the development of the country’s helicopter industry and will allow local enterprises to increase their scientific and technical potential”, said Leonid Belykh, Managing Director of the Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant, according to a statement issued by Rostec.

The Mi-8 helicopter, also known as the Mi-171, is capable of transporting passengers and cargo loads weighing up to 4,000 kg in the cabin or using an external load, as well as carrying out search and rescue operations and evacuating those injured. The list of currently manufactured versions of the Mi-8 includes transport, passenger, fire-fighting, sanitary and rescue helicopters.

More than 1,000 choppers of this kind are used in Central and Southeast Asian countries, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Latin America and some former Soviet republics.

Last year, Kazakhstan ranked 14th in the world in term of the biggest relative increases in military expenditures as the country has spent about $1.7 billion on its military in 2019 – 19 percent more than the previous year, according to data compiled by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

The lion’s share of Kazakh military-technical purchases is imported from Russia, which is considered to be the second-largest military power in the world after the U.S.

Between 1995 and 2017, Russia has supplied Kazakhstan with Sukhoi Su-27 fighter (14 units), Aero L-39 jet trainer (13 units), Ilyushin Il-76 strategic airlifter, as well as eight Sukhoi Su-30 super-maneuverable fighter aircraft. Russian-made helicopters in Kazakhstan are estimated to be at around 200 units, including the Mi-8/17 and Ka-32A11BC multi-purpose helicopters; the Mi-24V and Mi-35M transport and combat helicopters; and the Mi-26T heavy transport helicopter.

Earlier this year, Kazakhstan received the last batch of Mi-35M transport and combat helicopters, a rotor craft manufactured by Rostvertol which is a subsidiary of Russian Helicopters.