Iraq Receives upgraded Mi-17 helicopters

The Iraqi air force has accepted back into service the first upgraded Mi-17 helicopters after the completed an upgrade program to modernize the missile warning and internal communications subsystems.The Mi-17s currently are the backbone of the Iraqi air force’s rotorcraft force.One of the problems with the old internal communications system has been that it could not handle multiple voices, so coordinating among crew members during critical phases of operations, including landing, was effectively not possible. The enhancement aims to cure that shortfall.Also, the Mi-17s are being fitted with the EADS-built AAR-60 missile warning system. Besides the improved sensor, the aircraft’s also getting better ability to deploy countermeasures automatically, thus reducing response time. The countermeasures system dispenses M206 flares.“The new ICS system will improve greatly coordination inside the aircraft between pilots and the rest of the crew, while the improved flare system will protect the aircraft against enemy threats,” Iraqi air force Lt. Col. Jasem Mohammed says in an announcement about the completion of the first helicopter. Mohammed is instructor pilot at the 15th squadron, which supports Iraqi special operations forces. The upgrade is being performed in Jordan at Marka International Airport under a $14 million contract that will last about a year and lead to the upgrade of 10 rotorcraft, says the U.S.-led Multinational Security Transition Command-Iraq. Arinc, through which the helicopters were acquired by the Iraqi military, is involved in the program.U.S. Army officials have defended the Arinc sale, which ran a year behind schedule and over-budget, arguing that the urgency of the requirement and the uniqueness of buying Russian equipment necessitated going with Arinc as a sole source. Arinc, despite its lack of experience buying Mi-17s, was selected as the contractor because the company was already in Iraq performing maintenance work on the nascent Iraqi air force’s skeleton fleet, which included older Mi-17s and Bell helicopters, Aviation Week’s Defense Technology International reported in its June edition.

Posted in: Helicopter,Iraq