Russia deploys multirole Mi-35M attack helicopter with new EW complex Vitebsk in Syria.
The multirole Mi-35M attack helicopter is a comprehensive modernisation of the Mi-24V. The Mi-35M was developed by the Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant, and has been series produced at Rostvertol since 2005.
The Mi-35M offers round the clock:
- Combat use of guided and unguided weapons in regular and challenging climate conditions;
- Operational for attack flights at altitudes of 10-25 m daytime and 50 m at night over land or water.
The Mi-35M attack helicopter spotted in Syria with new EW complex Vitebsk. The Vitebsk is designed for individual protection of the helicopter from antiaircraft missile and radars.
The Vitebsk electronic warfare system allows an airplane or helicopter to “see” in a radius of several hundred kilometers. It can determine who is aiming at the helicopter, and after a missile is fired, can lead the missile elsewhere so it misses its target. This applies to all missiles, whether equipped with radar, infrared, or combined guidance systems.
Interestingly, when this system is onboard, it can protect not only the helicopter or plane, but everything within a certain radius, forming an “electronic canopy” around the object being protected.
Vitebsk electronic warfare systems have passed all tests and have already been installed onboard aircraft such as the Ka-52 Alligator, Su-25 attack helicopters, and the Mi-26 heavy transport helicopter.