Country of origin:

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Description:

Two-seat armoured transport and attack helicopter

Power Plant:

[Mi 24D]

Two 1,641 kw (2,200 shp) Klimov [Isotov] TV3-117 Series III turboshafts

Specifications:

Armament:

One four-barrel JakB 12.7 mm (0.5 in) rotary Gatling type machine gun in remotely controlled nose turret; provision for guided and unguided anti-armour missiles/including 32 tube mounted 57 mm (2.24 in) rocket pods.

History:

The Hind was a second-generation Soviet helicopter gunship which originally emerged as a heavily armed armoured transport capable of carrying a crew of four and eight assault troops. It was designed by Mil at its Zaporozhye facility, the design team being headed by Marat Tischenko. However, development led to the Mi 24 which was designed to accompany Mi 8 troop transport helicopters into battle. It was placed in large-scale production at two plants at Arsenyev and Rostov, and has been supplied to at least 39 air forces around the world.

The weapons operator and pilot were placed in tandem in armoured and stepped individual cockpits. Initial production variant was what became known to the West as the ‘Hind A’ with two Isotov TV2-117 turboshafts and testing commenced in the early 1970s. Initial pre-series aircraft were known as the Hind B by NATO and had UB-32 pods containing 32 57 mm S-5 unguided rockets. Hind A variants were deployed in 1974 in East Germany.

Development led to the ‘Hind C’ and the ‘Hind D’ which entered service in 1976 and had a re-designed nose with extra armour plating to protect the crew. Steel and titanium was substituted for aluminium in critical components, and greater use was made of redundant systems. Power was provided by two Isotov TV2-117 turboshafts mounted side-by-side on top of the fuselage ahead of the rotor pylon, driving a five-blade main rotor and a three-blade tail rotor. A gas turbine APU is installed aft of the pylon, being able to run all systems. The fuselage is of all-metal semi monocoque frame stringer construction; and it is fitted with a retractable tricycle undercarriage. It has a capability of carrying up to eight fully equipped troops in the cabin and is viewed by Soviet forces as being a high-speed nap-of-the-earth tank, as well as being very capable in the helicopter versus helicopter combat role.

Development led to the ‘Hind E’, which differed basically in having four AT-6 Spiral laser-homing tube-launched anti-tank missiles. It still had the 12.7 mm (0.50 in) Gatling type machine gun but some were changed by the installation of a twin-barrel 23 mm cannon under the starboard front fuselage, this model entering service in 1981. Some 20 attack regiments were formed to operate the type in the Soviet Army, each equipped with up to 60 ‘Hinds’.

The type saw extensive service during the Soviet campaign in Afghanistan, and was used by Iraq against Iranian AH-1J SeaCobras. On one occasion an Iraqi ‘Hind’ allegedly shot down an Iranian McDonnell F-4 Phantom in a head-on engagement. In 1981 the ‘Hind F’ appeared fitted with a fixed twin-barrel GSh-30-2 30 mm cannon which in export form became known as the Mi 24P, later re-designated the Mi 35P, examples of which were supplied to India. More than 2,300 Mi 24 ‘Hinds’ have been produced and eventually the type began to be replaced by the Mi 28 ‘Hokum’.

A number of records were set by the type: a ‘Hind A’ on 21 September 1978 set a world helicopter speed record over a 15.75 km (9.78 miles) course at 368.87 km/h (228.9 mph); and a 500 km (311 miles) closed circuit record set by a two-woman aircrew of 331 km/h (206.697 mph).

On 27 March 1997 an Antonov An 124 heavy transport flew from Thailand headed for Port Moresby, NG. On board were two Mil Mi 8 transport helicopters and two Mil Mi 24 “Hind” attack helicopters, together with weapons, ordinance and ammunition, destined for Sandline International, a UK based company, to be used against separatist rebels known as the Bougainville Revolutionary Army. This shipment had previously been impounded for a week in Thailand over discrepancies in the aircraft’s manifest and the identity of some of the crew members. It was reported at the time they would be operated by Executive Outcomes, a South African mercenary organisation, on behalf of the New Guinea Government. They were part of a $49 million contract between the PNG Government and Sandline to supply weapons and manpower to assist in the war in Bougainville.

However, the New Guinea Government refused permission for the delivery of the aircraft and the crew of the An 124 sought and obtained permission for a diversion to Darwin, NT. Australian authorities directed the An 124 to land at the RAAF base at Tindal, where the four helicopters were unloaded and placed in storage. The mercenaries and Sandline personnel were deported and the New Guinea Prime Minister, Defence Minister and Finance Minister stood down following a meeting with senior officers of the Army. A caretaker Government took over and the Australian Government was invited to intervene.

Some years later the Mi 8s, still owned by Sandline, were taken out of storage and exported but the Mi 24s remained in storage in a hangar at Tindal, later being removed fom the hangar and placed in open storage. It would appear these Mi 24s were the ‘Hind D’ variant. During investigations into the import of the machines it was reported the Papua New Guinea Government had purchased six Mi 24s from Eastern Europe for $28 million, these machines to join the PNG Army Special Forces Unit at Wewak in 1997. However, it seems these further machines were not imported.

In 2002 the Mi 24s were reported to be sold to the Royal Nepalese Army for $8.4 million to be used against Maoist rebels but the sale fell through and negotiations were put in train to sell them to another un-named party. Stored in Australia at Tindal, there was a legal battle between the PNG Government, Sandline and other parties as to which company owned the equipment, and what should be its ultimate fate. The Australian Department of Defence in 2003 stated the Mi 24s were in storage at RAAF Tindal on behalf of Sandline, and remained that Company’s property. The Mi 24s were to only remain in storage for a few months pending a decision as to their sale but by 2016, 19 years later, they remain stored in the Northern Territory.

In September 2015 news reports stated the helicopters were in a “beauracratic limbo” and that the storage at Tindal had cost the Federal Government an unquantifiable sum. In July 2016 a report was released that the Mi 24s would be soon disposed of.  At one stage it was reported the Mi 24s had been loaded on to low loaders and removed from the RAAF base but their destination was not known.  The two aircraft in containers were taken to the hazadous waste section of the Shoal Bay Waste Management Facility.  At one stage it was thought they would be presented to aviation museums but reports indicate, firstly, that they were not in good condition; and that they contained asbestos so could not go to museums.