USA buys more and more Mi-17s for young democracy
According to the October issue of the authoritative magazine Air Forces Monthly, on July 8, the Afghan Air Force delivered two new Mi-17 helicopters, which arrived in Kabul aboard the An-124 military transport aircraft. These helicopters belong to a batch of 10 helicopters (the contract amount was $ 155 million) and will join the 25 helicopters of this type that Afghans already have. All 10 helicopters should be delivered by November 2010. The seller is not named - the magazine suggests that they are most likely from the aftermarket, since one of the two delivered helicopters was painted white, and the name of the old one was applied on its side under the cockpit modifications - Mi-8T. Another helicopter bore Afghan insignia and wore a two-tone brown camouflage that was adopted for all recently delivered Mi-17s.
Further deliveries of Mi-17V-5 helicopters, according to the magazine, are also being carried out: for example, new helicopters w / n 702 and 705 were spotted on July 29 in the Jalalabad region on rescue operations in flood-affected areas. They probably belong to a new batch, the side numbers of which start with # 701. Since Afghan Air Force hull numbers are usually assigned sequentially, it can be assumed that at least five helicopters have been delivered recently. This year, the US Naval Air Systems Command issued a request for the purchase of an additional 21 Mi-17V-5 or Mi-172 helicopters for the Afghan Air Force. The magazine assumes early deliveries, although there is no confirmation that the contract has been concluded. Thus, recent helicopter shipments may not be relevant to this request.
The rebuilding of the Afghan Air Force began in 2005. Like all newly created security forces in Afghanistan, the Air Force is heavily dependent on NATO Training Mission / Combined Security Transition Command (Afghanistan) advisers and instructors.
Within this structure, there is a Combined Air Power Transition Force (CAPTF), which is responsible for training, education and assistance to the Afghan Air Force in the creation of its organizational structures and aircraft fleet, personnel training, modernization of bases and infrastructure, support in conducting operations. Most of the CAPTF advisors serve in the 438th Air Expeditionary Wing of the United States Air Force, but members of the Canadian, Czech, and more recently Hungarian Air Forces are also involved.
The entire combat potential of the Afghan Air Force was initially concentrated in the Kabul Air Wing; gradually some of its aviation units were deployed in various parts of the country. The Kabul wing consists of three squadrons: 377 helicopter, 373 aviation and presidential squadrons. The Air Force Training Center is also located in Kabul.
As of December 1, 2009, the Afghan Air Force had 2,851 people and 45 aircraft, including 22 airborne assault Mi-17s and three presidential ones, nine attack Mi-35s for close fire support, two military transport aircraft Alenia C-27A (out of 20 converted former Italian Air Force G-222 transporters), five An-32 military-technical cooperation and the only An-26. Three training L-39Cs are currently in storage at the Afghan Air Force base at Kabul International Airport. Until now, the vast majority of the Air Force personnel are still assigned to the Kabul Air Wing, operating from the Kabul airport. From this wing, separate detachments were allocated in Mazar-i-Sharif (Balkh province) and Herat (Herat province), in which, according to Air Forces Monthly, there are a small number of Mi-17s.
By October 31, 2010, the number of Air Force should be 4417 people and 73 aircraft, including the increased number of C-27, Mi-17 and L-39. A detachment in Herat will receive a third Mi-17, a permanent detachment will be created in Shindad, Jalalabad and Gardez (province of Pactria, two Mi-17s). The detachment in Shindada should be strengthened and in one or two years become the third wing of the Afghan Air Force. In the future, the airbase in Shindada will become a training center for flight personnel, where pilots, flight engineers, medics and air gunners will be trained. In the absence of its own training center for the rapidly growing Afghan Air Force, some of the flight personnel, mainly pilots, began training abroad a few years ago. In early 2010, the first pilots and flight engineers completed their training in the US and UK.
The plans announced in 2009 envisage an increase in the number of air forces to 8017 people and 152 aircraft and helicopters by 2016. In addition to air wings in Kabul, Kandahar and Shindad, as well as units in Gardez, Herat, Jalalbad and Mazar-i-Sharif, eight temporary units will be created throughout the country, including the one already available at the Farah airport (Farah province). The aircraft fleet is likely to be expanded with new training helicopters and aircraft for initial and basic training, reconnaissance and light transport aircraft (for example, Cessna 208 Caravan), light attack aircraft (possibly L-39 or L-159).
The decommissioning of the last An-26 is planned for 2011, and by the end of 2012 the An-32 will follow. By this time, all 20 C-27As should be delivered, including 18 in the transport modification and two for the presidential detachment. Due to the expected shortage of spare parts, all Mi-35s are expected to be written off no later than 2016. Current plans provide for their replacement with armed Mi-17s, which will unify the composition of the combat helicopter fleet, making it the same type.
In terms of training, the Associated Press quoted Wing 438 Commander Michael Boera, who is responsible for training Afghan pilots: “They are doing pretty well what they are used to (simple daytime flights in good weather to solve transport and logistics problems). But they are not at all able to fly on instruments and at night. They also have no experience in combat missions."
The first training flight in the dark, using a night vision device by the pilot, took place only recently - on August 22 of this year. According to Bowira, "truly Afghan pilots will only be able to fly in a few years."
