Mil Mi-28N Havoc

Development History

Though Russian interest and experiments in helicopter development go back to the early 1930s, it was not until the US Army demonstrated the military applications of helicopters, first in Korea and then in Vietnam, that the resources were committed for serious development of military helicopters. Russian commanders faced with the daunting task of defending the long, desolate border with China seized on the Airmobile Infantry concept with both hands. The military version of the Mi-8 Hip medium transport helicopter, introduced in 1967, could carry 24 armed troops, and strap a respectable load of rockets or bombs onto its external ordnance racks.

For the same reasons as the US army, magnified by the need to be able to concentrate firepower rapidly at any point along a border thousands of miles long, Russian forces also needed a heavily armed and armoured helicopter with real anti-tank capability. The result was the Mi-24 Hind. Possibly driven by the long-proven interdependence of tanks and infantry, or by the reflection that while a helicopter can dominate territory, only infantry can hold it, Mil's designers included a cabin holding up to eight troops. Just as the Russians had upped the stakes in armoured personnel carrier (APC) design by combining the roles of battle-taxi and tank destroyer to produce the BMP series of infantry fighting vehicles (IFV), so the Hind could be seen as a flying IFV, combining the roles of battle-taxi and armoured ground-attack aircraft.

The Hind was a near-contemporary of the ill-fated Cheyenne project, and both aircraft display a similar emphasis on high speed and aircraft-like attack profiles. Unlike the Cheyenne, though, the Hind evolved into a very practical aircraft, and extensive combat experience in Afghanistan amply demonstrated the value of its heavy armament and armour. Though the troop compartment was rarely used for its intended purpose, it made the Hind an exceptionally versatile machine, with a range of capabilities no other helicopter could match.

By the late seventies, however, Russian army aviation had come to accept the American conclusion that small size and agility were the essential attributes of a battlefield helicopter, and issued a requirement for a helicopter to counter the Apache. The Mil and Kamov design bureaux produced the Mi-28 Havoc and the Ka-50 Hokum which both flew for the first time in 1982. While Kamov used the bureau's trademark coaxial rotor system to produce a novel design, the Havoc's layout corresponds almost point-for-point with the Apache's.

The Havoc's general layout is much like the Apache's, but it is more powerful and carries a heavier weapon-load. Though perhaps not quite as agile in all respects as its US counterpart, the difference in performance is minor, and the two helicopters are well-matched. One interesting legacy of the Hind design is the Havoc's small cargo compartment. As well as its general utility, this can also permit one Havoc to rescue the crew of another. Like the Havoc's elaborate automated system for canopy jettison and escape slide inflation, this should be seen as part of the admirable Russian aviation tradition of making the best possible provision for crew escape.

When the Havoc and Hokum were evaluated against each other in 1986, the Mil bureau, which had designed all the Soviet Army's helicopters to date, was shocked to find that Kamov's Hokum was preferred, on the grounds of cost-effectiveness, performance, survivability and weapon effectiveness. Mil's considerable political influence was exerted to the utmost in an effort to force the reversal of this verdict, but the result stood. The only concession extracted was permission to continue Havoc development for possible export sales.

In the event, the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the Russian defence budget left both helicopters without real volume production orders, and a vicious propaganda war between the Mil and Kamov bureaux continues to this day. Both helicopters have been substantially developed in the interval, but neither has yet found a true launch customer. Many potential users are sceptical about the safety of the Hokum's coaxial rotors (a point loudly trumpeted by Mil), but on the other hand, the Havoc may well have suffered in part because it is undeniably one of the ugliest helicopters ever to fly, possessing neither the sleek menace of the Hind nor the functional brutality of the Apache.

Specifications

Avionics

• Mast-mounted millimetric radar
• Stabilised surveillance and sighting system with thermal and TV channels
• Helmet-mounted target designation and indication system
• Night vision goggles
• Inertial navigation system and global positioning system
• Communications facilities

Armament

• 2A42 30mm cannon (armour piercing and high explosive rounds)
• Igla-V IR guided air-to-air missiles
• Ataka radio command guided anti-tank missiles
• 80mm unguided rockets
• 130mm unguided rockets
• GSh-23L 23mm cannon pods

Combat Survivability

• Radar and laser warning receivers
• Chaff and flare dispensers
• Electronic counter measures (IR and radar jammers)
• IR engine exhaust suppressors
• Redundancy and shielding of vital components
• Ballistically tolerant cockpits (up to 20mm calibre ammunition)
• Energy absorbing seats and airframe