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Background
— Medium-Lift Helicopters — Polish Mi-17 Helicopters |
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Update 31 March 2008
– CP reports that four more Polish Mi-17s may be available to Canadian Forces at KAF on "a contribution
basis".
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A Little Help From our Polish Friends
Poland has confirmed that two of the four Mi-17 medium-lift transport helicopters to deploy to southern
Afghanistan are to be "at the disposal of Canada" in Kandahar Province. These helicopters
were brought into Polish service with remarkable speed thanks to a mixture of luck and
flexibility.
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The luck was one-sided. Polish arms firm, Bumar, had brokered a deal to supply Iraq with Russian Mi-17s. The
package combined rebuilt Mi-17-1V and new-built Mi-17-5V types. Iraq changed its specification,
insisting upon brand-new, ramped Mi-17-5Vs only. Bumar was paid a kill-fee for the other helicopters, allowing Poland to
buy Mi-17s optimized for hot, dusty operations at a cut rate.
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Adapting Mi-17s for Polish service in Afghanistan
Poland already had experience with Hip helicopters (both earlier-model [1] Mi-17s and Mi-8s), so Mi-17 V-1
service entry was seamless. This type also has a long history in Afghanistan and not just with the Soviet Union. The
CIA and US special forces have operated Mi-17s in Afghanistan since early 2002.[2] That experience will
prove useful to the Poles and may have already suggested improvements for the Mi-17s for operations in
the hostile Afghan climate. The Polish Mi-17s deploying to Afghanistan are all operated by the
Lotnictwo Wojsk Ladowych ( LWL or Polish Army Aviation). [3]
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[1] There is some confusion over Mi-8 and Mi-17 designations. In simple terms, Mi-8s for
export are designated Mi-17. When exported, the Kazan-built Mi-8MTV-1 (with 'clam shell' rear doors)
becomes a Mi-17-1V while the Mi-8MTV-5 (with rear ramp) become a Mi-17-5V.
[2] The CIA and special forces are said to prefer Mi-17s to Black Hawks partly for cabin capacity
(23m3 vs 11.22m3), partly for anonymity.
[3] All LWL Mil transports are grouped within the 25 BKPow (25 Brygada Kawalerii Powietrznej or Air Cavalry
Brigade). Transport Mils fly with the 37 DLOT (37 Dywizjon Lotniczy or Air Wing). A medevac flight operates
2 x Mi-17AE ratownictwa medycznego conversions.
[4] Documented Taliban missile attacks on aircraft are rare ( in July 2007, a missile, probably a
Strela-2/SAM-7, was fired at a USAF C-130 over SW Afghanistan). Exhaust diffusers reduce the risk as do
active countermeasures such as infrared decoy flares and IR jammers. The Russians began masking Mi-24 gunship
exhausts in Afghanistan in the 1980s. The same diffuser is now applied to Mi-17s (along with LIP missile
warning systems, ASO-2B flare launchers, and LIPA IR jammers). CIA Mi-17s mount twin ALQ-144 IR jammers as
on CF CH-124s.
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Photo Credits —
Mi-17 sideview: Stephen Priestley, Iraqi Mi-17s: US Army , exhaust
suppressor close-up (centre): Davis Engineering , other images
from Lotnictwo.net ( middle right, © Maciej Kałdowski,
plus middle left and CIA Mi-17 exhaust diffuser © Adam Pękala).
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Polish sources mention exhaust diffusers for its Mi-17 but at the time of writing, the shrouds had yet to be fitted.
The object of an exhaust diffuser is to reduce a helicopter's infrared signature – thus reducing its
vulnerability to heat-seeking surface-to-air missiles. [4] The Iraqi
Mi-17 5Vs feature factory-installed diffusers (left) while CIA-operated Mils are fitted with
diffusers designed by WR Davis Engineering in the US (right). Poland may choose either of these diffusers (the
Russian type also fitting the Mi-24, the US type being more efficient )