A Russian Ka-52 attack helicopter maneuvers on the deck of the French Navy amphibious ship Mistral in Saint Petersburg. (French Navy photo)
French Ship Mistral Hosts Russian Naval Aviation
(Source: French Navy; issued Nov. 30, 2009)
(Issued in French only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)
"This day will mark history." These are the words uttered on November 27, 2009 by the Director General and Chief Designer of the Kamov firm, Mr Sergei Viktorovich Mikheyev, at the first landing of the Russian Ka-52 combat helicopter aboard a helicopter carrier. In this case, the ship was the French Navy’s Bâtiment de Projection et Commandement (BPC) Mistral.
Having barely sailed out of the Neva, in the heart of St. Petersburg, where the Mistral made a four-day visit, the ship made a "cross deck" landing exercise with Russian Navy helicopters. For over an hour, several deck landings were made by a Ka-27 (Helix anti submarine warfare helicopter), a Ka-29 (assault transport helicopter) and the impressive Ka-52, which also simulated a refueling on the flight deck of the Mistral.
The Ka-52 is Russia’s latest combat helicopter, and like other helicopters designed by the Kamov design bureau is fitted with coaxial main rotors. Thanks to the absence of anti-torque tail rotor, they offer stability and exceptional agility. Another originality of the Ka-52 is its ejector seats, which allow its two pilots, installed side by side, to be extracted from the aircraft after the blades are blown off in less than 6 seconds.
The Ka-52, which has not yet entered active service, thus made its first deck landings on the Mistral, whose choice is a strong symbol of the friendship between Russia and France.
Further evidence of the close Franco-Russian relationship was given by the participation of a French officer to the KA-29’s deck landings. Ensign Rémi Wasseln, helicopter flight deck officer on the Mistral, made several landings in the Mistral aboard the Ka-29. It is with ill-concealed joy that he commented on these bilateral exercises: "It's a rare moment that I experienced, and I will have fond memories of being able to fly over the Mistral in the Ka-29 while a Ka-52 was in the landing circuit. The crew of the Ka-29 was very friendly, and showed great kindness to me. I look forward to working again with the Russian navy, maybe with the Ka-52," he said.
In unison, General Nikolai Victirivitch Kuklev, acting commander of the Russian Naval Air Arm, M. Mikheev and Captain Didier Piaton, commander of the Mistral, welcomed the ease with which these exercises were smoothly conducted. Adapting protocols, acclimatizing to new operational cultures, and communicating when not speaking the same language are not easy accomplishments. These difficulties have been overcome by the common desire of the Russian naval aviation and the French navy to mark this day in history by allowing the Ka-52 Russian made its first deck landings on the French Mistral.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: The Russian government has shown interest in purchasing one or more Mistral-class amphibious ships from France, and the visit to St. Petersburg was an initial demonstration of its capabilities.
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