Helicopters arrived from Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant to the main operating base of Utair-Engineering JSC in Tyumen. Helicopters spent in the air, in total, about 19 hours, made several intermediate landings (in Irkutsk, Krasnoyarsk, Omsk), breaking the distance of almost 3 thousand kilometres. Their main destination will be passenger and cargo transportation in the interests of oil and gas producing companies in the fields in Western and Eastern Siberia. In addition, two helicopters will be equipped with medical modules and will begin operations under the priority state project on the development of sanitary aviation.

On the occasion of receiving new helicopters, a presentation of new helicopters took place on December 27, 2017 at the Plekhanovo airfield. Of the six machines received, four were presented at the aerodrome. Two more helicopters underwent pre-operational training at the locations of the dislocation.

The airline launched a program to update the fleet of aircraft in 2007. During this time, the company purchased 45 Mi-8AMT helicopters. At the moment, the company's strategy implies a further continuation of the fleet renewal process, based on Mi-8 / Mi-17 helicopters. Helicopters of the Mi-8T type will consistently complete their work and will be replaced in the company's fleet. The renovation of the park is also associated with the increasing demands of customers for the equipment of the Armed Forces and their age.

Mi-8AMT helicopter

In the coming days the helicopters will start working in the fields. One of these helicopters will work in the Tyumen region, perform work for the oil and gas company in Tobolsk. The second will leave for the Republic of Komi for Usinsk. Another 2 helicopters will begin work at the Vankor field in Eastern Siberia. Helicopters that will operate in the fields are intended for the transportation of shift teams and cargo. It will be a universal cargo-passenger transport. All of them will be trained in the engineering center "Utair Engineering", where they will install additional fuel tanks and attachment points for transporting goods on the external suspension. Other 2 helicopters intended for medical transportation are also being prepared for operation. One has already been sent to Khabarovsk. It will be operated by the local helicopter operator Vostok. The second one will serve one of the six regions in which the airline is represented. According to the requirements of the Russian government's decree on air ambulance, such helicopters must be new, produced in the Russian Federation and equipped with a medical module. Their preparation for operation is also carried out in Utair Engineering.

Director of the Tyumen branch of the Center for Disaster Medicine Evgeny Naumov: "One of the new helicopters will be converted into a helicopter of air ambulance to deliver patients from remote areas of the Tyumen region to medical facilities. Until the end of the year, the helicopter is equipped with a medical module with the most modern equipment. The module's equipment will allow evacuating patients unconscious and shocked, carrying artificial lung ventilation and other medical measures on board, and monitoring vital vital functions throughout the flight. The need in our region is transportation of more than 200 patients per year. In general, these are hard-to-reach places where the helicopter is the only mode of transport "

It should be noted that with the arrival of six new aircraft in the Utair Group fleet, the number of Mi-17 (Mi-171, Mi-172, Mi-8AMT / MTV) helicopters increased to 110 units. It is the largest fleet of Mi-17s in civil aviation. In 2017, the volume of work performed by Mi-17 helicopters of the Utair Group in Russia increased more than 3.5 times compared to 2016. In total, the company owns more than 330 helicopters of various types, including 25 Mi-26 helicopters.

Vice President and Flight Director of Utair-Helicopter Services Dmitry Streltsov: "Air transport will be fully provided for. About 100 helicopters, we assign a daily plan to Russia and about 40 helicopters abroad. The customer is interested in the safe transportation of his people - that is why they switch to the operation of helicopters of the Mi-17 family and, moreover, the requirements are put forward such that the cars are not older than 25 years. In addition, we are systematically engaged in updating and modernising the helicopter fleet. The machines received are absolutely new, more powerful, with an extended range of operation, including range, height and loading. "

According to the plans for 2018, the major customers of Utair will remain the largest companies in the oil and gas sector (about 70%), energy and construction. Also, the helicopter operator will continue the development of air ambulance and passenger transportation on rotorcraft in hard-to-reach regions. The plan provides for an increase in the total flying time of helicopters in Russia by 7.5% compared to 2017 (it will be more than 100 thousand hours). In this case, the raid on the Mi-17 will grow by 14%. In addition, UTair will remain the largest provider of air transport services for peacekeeping missions: more than 50 aircraft will be involved. And in early 2018, "Utair - Helicopter Services" will be the first in Russia operator of a Mi-171A2 helicopter.

The year 2017 was a jubilee year for the UTair Group of Companies. On the anniversary of Utair approached one of the largest aviation groups of the Russian Federation, which includes various segments of the airline industry: passenger aircraft and helicopter transportations, aviation work, business passenger transportation. In terms of helicopter business, Utair Group is the world's leading helicopter structure. Utair Helicopter Services and companies in the helicopter segment of the Utair Group carry out the entire range of tasks for customers that can be solved using helicopters, starting with passenger and freight traffic, continuing with fire fighting, search and rescue operations, sanitary tasks , as well as services for monitoring pipelines and power lines, transportation of goods, VIP-transportation. A very important part of business is occupied by flights to floating drilling - offshore operations. Last year, operation of unmanned aerial vehicles began.

First Deputy General Director for Commerce of Utair-Helicopter Services JSC Oleg Semenov: "We have helicopters operating practically throughout the country, but are concentrated in those regions where our main customers operate. About 70% of our volumes in Russia are orders from the oil and gas complex. Geography is determined by the location of those oil and gas fields on which we work, providing transportation services to our customers. In addition to the oil and gas complex, we cooperate with energy companies, municipal customers, sanitation and transportation of passengers in those regions where another mode of transportation is simply impossible. The experience of helicopter operations of our group covers the four continents on which we are represented. We work in more than twenty countries. In addition to Utair-Helicopter Services, a number of helicopter operators registered in other countries are included in the helicopter segment of the Utair Group. Utair-Engineering is also part of the helicopter segment of the Utair Group of companies, being our main supplier of services for the overhaul and maintenance of helicopters. Also in our helicopter segment is another very important organisation - the Personnel Training Center.

The training center was established in 1967. This is an autonomous non-profit organisation of additional professional education. Basically, it provides services for the airline Utair and its dependent units. The training center deals mainly with the training of aviation and technical personnel, and also assists in training for outside organisations, providing specialist services: riggers, heads of sites for the reception of helicopters and aircraft. Beginning in the 1990s, specialists from the flight crew and engineering staff for the South African Republic, Yugoslavia, Slovakia, Turkey, China, Colombia, Sudan, Peru, India were trained at the center.

Director of the Center for Personnel Training Vladimir Demkin: "Trainers are very expensive things. Sometimes simulators are more expensive than the aircraft itself. Our airline was the largest in terms of the number and types of aircraft in Russia. Their number reached thirty. None of the companies did. And all the training of these specialists was provided by our Training Center. There are also "Procedural" and rescue simulators. These simulators provide quality training. They work every day without days off. "

Vice-President - flight director of Utair-Helicopter Services Dmitry Streltsov: "Our new helicopters have access to night flights and we certainly plan to carry out any work in the polar regions. Crews are prepared and able to perform such flights. For this we need only prepared infrastructure on the ground - illuminated landing areas. Conditionally perform the flight and on not illuminated platforms - the crews are also prepared. In the Arctic - today the northernmost point where we are based is Khatanga. There are also requests from scientific expeditions. We have experience working in the Arctic latitudes and with an icebreaker. Such work can not be mass - it's a series of unique, one-time, but we work, and we carry out such orders. "

Andrey Ilmensky, General Director of Utair-Helicopter Services: "In addition to the Mi-8 helicopters of early modifications, which we are restoring the resource, there are more modern Mi-8MTV, Mi-8AMTs under the general name Mi-17, which have different power-handling characteristics , fuel efficiency. They allow you to fly in more difficult weather conditions, have a greater carrying capacity. By Ka-32 helicopters in 2018, the fleet increase is not planned, but, in general, such plans exist. Helicopters carry out unique construction and installation works, perform off-duty operations on offshore projects of such companies as Gazpromgeologorazvedka. Next year, we will multiply and develop this experience, which our customers liked. As for the financial results, the revenue for 2018 is planned to be about 28 billion rubles for the helicopter segment. In 2017, it will be about 25 billion rubles. The increase is expected due to an increase in the scope of work, as well as an increase in the raid both in Russia and abroad ... We try to keep up to date in order to understand where we will be in 10 years. Therefore, we are developing and directing the UAV. Now we operate more than 20 such machines. This direction is in demand by our customers. Our task is to provide a comprehensive service: airplanes, helicopters, and unmanned aerial vehicles. "

One of the largest suppliers of helicopter equipment for the Utair Group is Airbus Helicopters. To date, the fleet of Group 21 car is a European manufacturer. There are also plans to expand this fleet in 2018.

A tour of the capacities of the technical center of Utair Engineering was also conducted for media representatives. The center provides a full cycle of technological processes for repairing helicopters and their components, as well as painting, ground and flight tests, modernisation and increase in the resource indicators of helicopters of Russian and foreign manufacturers (Ka-32, Mi-2, Mi-8, Mi-17, Mi- 171, Mi-26, Ec-130, As-355, As-350, Bo-105, R-44). The center also provides various metrological services, customs and logistics services.