The Russian Ministry of Defense intends to sign a contract this year for the supply of 114 Ka-52 helicopters in a modernized version of the Ka-52M. An enterprise has already been determined that will manufacture a new version of the Alligator - the Arsenyevsky Progress aircraft plant in Primorye, but production will begin no earlier than 2023, since the completion of the Ka-52M tests is scheduled for the end of 2022.
The creation of a new version of the Ka-52 helicopter became known in 2018. According to the general director of the Russian Helicopters holding, Andrey Boginsky, the Ministry of Defense, having studied the experience of using helicopters in combat conditions in the Syrian Arab Republic, set the designers the task of creating a modernized version, which will take into account the proposals of the flight and engineering personnel who participated in the battles.
As you know, tests of the new version of the Ka-52M "Superaligator" helicopter began in 2019, and a phased plan was drawn up for testing new on-board systems and weapons of the modernized helicopter. According to the plans of the developers and the military, state tests of the machine should end in December 2022, after which their mass production will begin. In total, it is planned to receive 114 Ka-52M helicopters.
As previously reported many times, unlike its predecessor, the Ka-52 helicopter, the upgraded Ka-52M "Superaligator"
received enhanced booking and a new on-board defense system that protects the vehicle from anti-aircraft missiles. The armament was unified with another rotorcraft, the Mi-28NM. The Ka-52M arsenal will include Hermes-A long-range missiles, Vikhr-M guided anti-tank missiles, as well as Product 305, an aircraft cruise missile with a range of up to 100 km.
For the use of new missiles, the GOES-451 multichannel sighting system will undergo a deep modernization, allowing the use of weapons at any time of the day and in any weather. In addition, the helicopter will receive a new radar with AFAR, new cockpit avionics and improved power supply. The changes will also affect the screw group.
And finally, the helicopter will be able to automatically receive data from the Strelets reconnaissance, control and communications complex, which will allow it to receive real-time information about the combat situation on the ground and probable targets.
What kind of helicopter will turn out in the end, it will be clear after conducting comprehensive tests of the upgraded machine. Time will tell whether it will be better or worse than Western-made helicopters. Comparing modern combat helicopters, and not only them, is a thankless task. But already now we can say that according to the declared characteristics, especially weapons, the Ka-52M, at least, will not be inferior to modern Western models of combat helicopters. It is possible that the upgraded version of the Ka-52M will attract more attention not only to the Russian army, but also from foreign customers, and not be limited, like the basic Ka-52, to Egypt alone.
