Russian producer positions itself for victory with the Ka-52K (521 words)

Published: 8/17/2001

Kamov considers that its continuing sales of the Ka-32A to South Korea, from Kumertau-based KAPP in conjunction with local agent LG Corporation, will assist its chances of winning the South Korean tender for 36 attack helicopters with the Ka-52K: an export version of the Ka-52 Alligator. The Ka-52 Alligator is currently being evaluated by the Russian Air Force (RusAF), according to Kamov, with completion anticipated by the end of this year. It was recently demonstrated to senior government officials and foreign air attaches, alongside the Ka-50N, in live firing exercises at the air force's flight test centre (GLITS) near Akhtyubinsk in Southern Russia. To date, 36 Ka-32s have been delivered to the Koreans and are being deployed in a number of roles, including fire fighting and police duties. The helicopters have been supplied in part as an offset against Russian debts of $1.9 billion to South Korea. For Kamov, the relationship with LG and the existence of specialist maintenance and parts facilities in Seoul, combined with the shared powerplant of the TV3-117VMA and the offer of 40% of the aircraft's production through to 2010, both augur a favourable decision. An announcement is expected around November 2001 and follows a MoU signed in March this year, between Russia and South Korea during a visit by Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov, relating to military cooperation in helicopters and other areas, such as the T-90 main battle tank. To ensure greater chances of success, however, the producer reports that it has been in negotiation with a number of unspecified British, French, Belgian and Israeli companies over avionics and weaponry. This resembles the process experienced in the Turkish tender, where extensive modifications were made by Kamov, in conjunction with Elbit and other suppliers, to meet Turkish concerns in the form of the Ka-50-2 Erdogan. Commenting on the 145 aircraft Turkish contract, Kamov still believes that, despite the naming of the Bell AH-1Z Super Cobra as the favourite candidate on the shortlist last year, problems of technology transfer of target designation systems and onboard computers from the USA to Turkey for local production of the helicopters could swing the deal in Russia's favour. However, IAI does not appear to share the Russian optimism, having acknowledged Bell's success in the Israeli media. The Russian producer still believes it is offering the most favourable pricing, for the deal, with Rosoboronexport reported to be following its predecessor, Rosvooruzheniye, in offering price incentives and offsets against Russian debt to Turkey, to persuade the Turkish away from the development of the AH-1 Cobra, which is already in service with its armed forces. Despite the fact that the Russians are reported to be willing to offer considerably greater flexibility in local production and in batch sizes than the Americans, they remain hampered by the considerable weight of potential US industrial offsets, if awarded the contract, although the Turkish are reported to be very specifically focused on developing domestic helicopter production.

Article ID: 2713