Russia gives Serbia two Mi-17 helicopters
Russia has donated two Mi-17-B5 military transport helicopters to the Serbian Army. The ceremony was held on Tuesday at the Nikola Tesla Airport in Belgrade in the presence of the Prime Minister of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić, the Minister of Defense of Serbia, Zoran Đorđević and the Minister of Internal Affairs, Nebojša Stefanović.
“For the first time in the past 36 years, the Army of Serbia received new helicopters,” the Prime Minister said. Vučić thanked the Serbian Ministry of Defense for cost-saving measures undertaken which made possible the purchase of both helicopters for 25 million euros. The Commander of Serbia’s Air Forces, Major General Ranko Zhivak stated that Serbia will continue to receive new equipment.
“We provided the required environment in order for these helicopters to be commissioned for the needs of Serbian Army after receipt and technical inspections,” Zhivak noted. The aircraft were produced by the Kazan Helicopters holding “Helicopters of Russia,” a part of the state owned corporation Rostec. The contract for supply of helicopters was signed in the autumn of 2015. Currently, the Serbian Army uses Mi-17 helicopters and also a few Mi-8 helicopters.
The Mi-17 helicopter is equipped to carry up to 4.5 tons of cargo and can reach a top speed of 262 kmh. It can hold up to 36 passengers and is 18.6 meters long, 4.7 meters tall and weighs 13 tons. The order to create a regional service center for Russian-made helicopters in Serbia, which are used in the region and around the world, was signed in January 2016 in Belgrade.