Russian Helicopters Holding Company has delivered three Ka-32A11BC multipurpose helicopters in Turkey, which will primarily be deployed for firefighting. In July 2018, contracts were signed with KAAN Air of Turkey for the delivery of the three helicopters.
“Ka-32A11BC is the helicopter with the best technical equipment for firefighting missions,” said Andrey Boginskiy, CEO of Russian Helicopters. “This rotorcraft is an admitted leader in its class, and it is capable of solving a wide range of tasks.”
The firefighting version of Ka-32A11BC can be equipped with various fire extinguishing systems, including Bambi Bucket and Simplex type, as well as a horizontal firefighting system. The company continues to explain the aircraft’s co-axial scheme and absence of the tail rotor provides for compactness, high power-to-weight ratio and maneuverability.
Ka-32A11BC has a high load lifting capacity up to five tons of cargo on the external sling. The assigned service life of Ka-32A11BC is extended to 32,000 hours. The helicopter is EASA certified and meets FAR-29 and AP-29 standards. It is being used in Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Spain, Canada, Kazakhstan, China, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, South Korea and Japan.
“Right now Turkey is interested in expanding its fleet of firefighting aircraft and Rostec intends to continue developing its cooperation with Ankara in this field,” said Viktor Kladov, director for international cooperation and regional policy at Rostec, which controls Russian Helicopters. “We estimate the current Turkish market for this type of helicopters as several dozens of machines.”
