Results of the XIV International Helicopter Industry Exhibition HeliRussia 2021

The XIV International Helicopter Industry Exhibition HeliRussia 2021 traditionally took place at Crocus Expo from 20 to 22 of May. The exhibition is organized by the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation and is held on the initiative and with the support of Helicopter Industry Association pursuant to the order of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 1606-р dated 07.19.2019. The presenting partner was the Russian Helicopters Holding, and the official partner of the event was VTB Bank.

In 2021, the exhibition returned to its regular spring format. Recap that last year HeliRussia was postponed to September due to the high burden of COVID-19. This year, in compliance with all precautions, during the three days of the exhibition, it was attended by over 10 thousand people.

HeliRussia has once again demonstrated a fine grain and confirmed its authoritative status as the largest European helicopter event. Today HeliRussia is not just an exhibition, but a whole brand of the aviation sector — the future of the helicopter and related industries in Russia and CIS and non-CIS countries is on the line. The exhibition is a modern and convenient platform for fruitful communication between aviation specialists and enthusiasts, developing collaborative action agenda, as well as discussing details and concluding contracts.

Despite the fact that the borders of the most countries, due to the ongoing pandemic, still remain closed, 163 companies from 13 countries of the world took part in the exhibition (Great Britain, Germany, Libya, New Zealand, Netherlands, Russia, USA, Turkey, Finland, France, Czech Republic, Switzerland, South Korea).

The total area of the exhibition in 2021 was 12,000 sq. m. The indoor exhibition area of HeliRussia 2021 was about 10,000 sq. m. The area of the street exposition where Mi-8, AW139 and Ansat were located was about 2,000 sq. m. The visitors got acquainted with the helicopter equipment of such reputed international manufacturers as Airbus Helicopters, Bell Textron, Leonardo Helicopters, Robinson Helicopter Company and, of course, the largest domestic manufacturer, presenting partner of the exhibition — Russian Helicopters Holding.

The following exhibits were presented at the exhibition:

Street exposure:

Ansat (2 pcs)
Mi-8
AW139

Exhibition samples of helicopters:

EC130 (2 pcs.)
EC350 (2 pcs.)
Robinson R44 (2 pcs.)
Robinson R66 (2 pcs.)
H125
Bo 105
Bell 505 jet ranger x
Mi-2
VRT-500

Autogyros:

Autogyro M24 Orion
Autogyro М16 Plus
Autogyro М24 Plus

Unmanned aerial vehicles of the helicopter type:

Helicopter-type unmanned aerial vehicle SH-380i
Helicopter-type unmanned aerial vehicle SH-500
Helicopter-type unmanned aerial vehicle SH-350
Hybrid sealed UAV SeaDrone MG
UAV “Prosvet” (aircraft type) — PLASP v.1 S
UAV vertical takeoff
UAV-copters of various modifications — 5 pcs.
SSJ mockup — additive manufacturing capabilities demonstrator
Software package for aircraft weight design

Greetings to the exhibition were sent by the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, the Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation and many other high-ranking and respected persons.

The first day of the exhibition

The first day of HeliRussia 2021 turned out to be extremely eventful.

The opening ceremony took place on the stage of the exhibition hall. The ceremony was attended by:

First Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defense and Security — Vladimir Kozhin; Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation — Aleksey Bezprozvannykh; Deputy Head of the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia) — Oleg Storchevoy; Deputy Chairman of the Union of Mechanical Engineers of Russia Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences — Boris Aleshin; Head of the Republic of Buryatia — Alexey Tsydenov; General Director of the Russian Helicopters holding — Andrey Boginsky; General Director of JSC “STLC” — Evgeny Dietrikh; General Director of JSC Rosoboronexport — Alexander Mikheev; General Director of UTair Aviation JSC — Andrey Martirosov.

Vladimir Kozhin made a welcoming speech, reading out the greetings of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin. The honored guests noted that HeliRussia, in the difficult conditions of the pandemic, keeps a decent bar and remains one of the few Russian aviation industry exhibitions that are held regularly.

Signatures and awards

HeliRussia has traditionally become a place to sign a number of important contracts and agreements.

One of the key events of the first day of the exhibition was the signing ceremony for the supply of the first light Russian VRT 500 helicopters, which took place at the stand of Russian Helicopter Systems JSC. The VRT500 is a light coaxial helicopter with a takeoff weight of up to 1600 kg. VRT500 was first presented to the public in May at the HeliRussia 2018. It is expected that the first 5 aircrafts will be received by Russian Helicopter Systems by the end of 2024.

The awarding ceremony of the Helicopter Industry Association cannot go unmentioned. This year Managing Director of JSC “Ulan-Ude Aviation Plant” Leonid Belykh officially recieved a medal “For contribution to the international cooperation in the helicopter industry”.

Also on the sidelines of the exhibition, Russian Helicopter Systems JSC and the MEDSI group of companies signed a contract on the organization of patient transportation. Within the framework of the signed agreement, patients of the MEDSI clinics are provided with a full range of air ambulance services. The company’s aircraft fleet consists of modern aircraft equipped with everything necessary for both scheduled and emergency transportation of patients. The agreement provides the organization of air transportation of patients to MEDSI clinics from the regions of the Russian Federation, the Moscow region to the site of the MEDSI Clinical Hospital in Otradnoye or to the airbase of Russian Helicopter Systems in Odintsovo (Podushkinskoye Shosse), from where they will be sent by ambulances to MEDSI hospitals. It is expected that this service will be in demand among patients with limited mobility. The sanitation project for Medsi patients is represented in the structure of the Medsi Home Assistance Service, which combines a wide range of services, from calling a physician or pediatrician at home and taking tests, to organizing constant medical support within a hospital at home. The capabilities of the sanitary aviation are also used in the delivery of MEDSI medical personnel to patients located both in the Moscow region and in other regions of the Russian Federation.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed our consciousness, taught us to take a responsible attitude to our health, making it easier for the patient to communicate with the doctor. It is important that our patients, regardless of where they are, can receive high quality medical care in time. 2020 saw a surge in demand for home health services. The number of visits to the Medsi Home Help Service in 2020 amounted to more than 165 thousand people, who were provided with about 337 thousand services. The possibility of air delivery of patients to MEDSI clinics will help to deliver a person to the hospital as quickly as possible and, thereby, save his life” — Eldar Letfullin, Head of the Commercial Service of the Medsi Home Care Department said.

Sergey Khomyakov, Deputy General Director for Commercial Affairs of Russian Helicopter Systems JSC, noted: “As one of the largest air ambulance operators in Russia, RHS has unique experience in this area. We are confident that the synergy of such two major players and leaders in their industries as Medsi and Russian Helicopter Systems will bring medical aviation in Russia to a new quality level and provide our clients with world-class services in a sector that is completely new for our country”.

The Novosibirsk Aircraft Repair Plant (NARP) of the Russian Helicopters holding (part of the Rostec State Corporation) signed an agreement on the organization of repair and maintenance of radio communication equipment manufactured by A.S. Popov Communications Equipment Plant, JSC (GZAS, JSC). This ceremony took place during the roundtable discussion “Aviation communication equipment and limited budget. Effective solutions for life extension and modernization”.

The agreement provides for the transfer of a set of necessary documentation, training and certification of NARP specialists for the right to perform work, refinement of ground control equipment and supply of original spare parts for certified repairs.

Within the terms of the agreement, NARP has the right to repair radio communication equipment, including work on the bulletin with the extension of the service life for Russian and foreign customers. This makes it possible to expand the competence of NARP in after-sales service.

Two signing events took place at the Airbus Helicopters stand. At 10:00 am, the ceremony of awarding the certificate of the first distributor of Airbus helicopters in Russia took place. It is the Gorka business aviation innovation center, which will now be able to offer Russian customers civilian Airbus helicopters: single-engine H125, H130 and twin-engine H135 and H145.

“It took us a long time to announce the certification of the first distributor of Airbus helicopters in Russia, because in order to get the right to distribute on our behalf, partners must meet the strict standards of the group. The opening of the first distribution center will simplify many tasks for customers on the local market — finally, those wishing to purchase a helicopter will have the opportunity to purchase, store and service a helicopter in one place” — Dmitry Perepelkin, Head of the Helicopter Division of Airbus Helicopters in Russia said.

Pavel Karjakin, the owner and general director of the Gorka heliport, added: “We are delighted to become the first distributor of Airbus helicopters in Russia. The infrastructure and business processes of Gorki comply with international standards and will allow demonstrating high quality service to Airbus customers”. It is planned that by the end of 2021 Gorka will be certified as a service center.

The certificate of approval as an authorized maintenance center for helicopters of the European aviation concern Airbus in Russia was solemnly presented to UTair-Engineering JSC.

“Currently, UTair-Engineering is the only service center for Airbus helicopters approved by the aircraft manufacturer in Russia. We have repeatedly confirmed our quality of service to our partners and we are glad that our technical service center has successfully passed the audit and received the certificate again” — Rashid Farajayev, General Director of UTair-Engineering JSC said.

“Just the day before, we completed the last formalities in order to once again confirm the high standard of services rendered by UTair-Engineering. We are pleased that now the owners and operators of Airbus helicopters can receive service in Russia in accordance with the manufacturer’s quality and safety standards” — Dmitry Perepelkin, Head of the Airbus Helicopters’ helicopter division in Russia and Belarus said.

Also, representatives of UEC-Klimov JSC (part of the United Engine Corporation of Rostec) held a number of signatures on the sidelines of the exhibition.

During the first day, a general agreement was signed between UEC JSC and UTair-Engineering JSC to ensure the airworthiness of the fleet of power plants of the Mi-8MTV-1 and Mi-8AMT helicopters. Before signing the agreement, the parties developed a joint development strategy until 2030, discussed the repair of engines in operation, modernization of the TV3-117 engine fleet to VK-2500. The companies also agreed to organize training for technical personnel of UTair-Engineering JSC under the programs of the training center of JSC UEC-Klimov.

“Helicopters are involved in complex and demanding missions, which are often urgent, and therefore it is impossible to allow a halt in the operation of machines for reasons of engine resource exhaustion. For these purposes, UEC-Klimov has developed a comprehensive program to maintain the airworthiness of the fleet of power plants installed on UTair-Engineering helicopters. The concluded agreement is a natural step in the development of cooperation between our companies. These are clear-cut intentions on paper to create a strong, high-quality and competitive after-sales service system” — Alexander Vatagin, Executive Director of UEC-Klimov JSC stressed.

The general agreement takes into account the positive results of all joint implemented projects and interests of the parties in the framework of further cooperation. “For several years now UTair-Engineering JSC and UEC-Klimov JSC have been demonstrating stable development of cooperation. For us, as the largest technical operator of helicopter engines and gearboxes used in the power plants of Mil and Kamov helicopters, this is an important trend that allows us to continuously improve the level of flight safety, reliability and quality of services for both the operator and the end customer of air transportation. The economic efficiency of operation is also important, which is also a key issue for mutual work” — noted the General Director of UTair-Engineering JSC Rashid Faradzhaev.

An agreement between JSC UEC-Klimov and OJSC Orsha Aircraft Repair Plant on the implementation of medium repair of aircraft engines on the territory of the Orsha Aircraft Repair Plant in Belarus was also signed within the framework of the International Helicopter Industry Exhibition HeliRussia 2021.

According to the document, JSC “UEC-Klimov” will carry out medium repairs of engines, supply special equipment, spare parts, parts and assemblies. Orsha Aircraft Repair Plant OJSC, in addition to areas for repairs, will provide support personnel to support the work. Medium repair involves the restoration of engine performance in the event of a malfunction before the specified resource is used up.

Within the framework of the exhibition, the French manufacturer of Cabri G2 helicopters — the company HELICOPTERES GUIMBAL — and the HELIATICA group (LLC Heliatika) announced the beginning of cooperation, within the framework of which LLC Heliatika became a distributor of Cabri G2 in Russia, and the service company CITICOPTER (LLC Citicopter) — by an authorized service center. HELIATICA will receive its first Cabri G2 demonstrator helicopter at the end of 2021. By the start of operation, the CITICOPTER subsidiary will complete the training of flight and technical personnel, purchase a special tool and expand its FAP-285 certificate to service the Cabri G2. Helicopter demonstrator HELIATICA plans to use both for training flights and for aviation work.

On May 21 UTair Aviation PJSC and the single operator of helicopter services in the Republic of Kazakhstan, Kazaviaspas JSC, signed a memorandum of cooperation in order to develop a long-term partnership. JSC Kazaviaspas is the largest helicopter operator in the Republic, which performs all types of helicopter transportation for government agencies, organizations and the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kazakhstan. UTair plans to provide training and retraining of the flight personnel of JSC Kazaviaspas. Employees of the Kazakhstani helicopter operator will be able to get access to simulators for Mi-26, Mi-8T, Mi-8MTV and Mi-8AMT helicopters at the UTair personnel training center in Tyumen. In addition, in the interests of the Kazakh side, UTair will provide aviation services on the world’s largest helicopter Mi-26 and provide its maintenance. There are 26 such aircraft in the UTair fleet. On the basis of UTair-Engineering JSC, maintenance of Mi-17 helicopters is also carried out at the request of Kazaviaspas.

“UTair is the largest helicopter operator in Russia and one of the leaders in the global helicopter business. Cooperation with JSC Kazaviaspas opens up new opportunities for us in the aviation market of Kazakhstan. We are ready to share our experience in servicing and operating Russian aircrafts, as well as to help train engineering and flight personnel” — commented Alexander Stefanyuk, General Director of UTair-Helicopter Services.

Bolat Abaidildinov, General Director of Kazaviaspas JSC of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Kazakhstan, noted: “We are glad to have business cooperation with our colleagues from Russia. Kazaviaspas is the sole operator of helicopter services in Kazakhstan, which operates flights in the interests of government agencies and organizations. Partnership with UTair is a promising direction of development not only for our airline, but also for Kazakhstani aviation in general, which allows us to learn from the vast experience and move to a new level of improvement in the air transport sector”.

Business program

Within the framework of the first day of HeliRussia exhibition, many events were held: conferences, roundtable discussions, workshops — the agenda was very tough.

The working tone of the rich business program was set by the plenary session “Industry trends. Оn the threshold of change”. The session was moderated by Ilya Doronov, journalist, TV and radio host, TEFI-2011 award winner. The speakers were: Deputy Head of the Office of the President of the Russian Federation for Support of the Activities of the State Council of the Russian Federation — Alexander Yurchik; Deputy Chairman of the Union of Mechanical Engineers of Russia, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences — Boris Aleshin; General Director of the Russian Helicopters holding — Andrey Boginsky; General Director of JSC “STLC” — Evgeny Dietrikh; Head of the Republic of Buryatia — Alexey Tsydenov; General Director of UTair Aviation JSC — Andrey Martirosov; Head of the Committee of Customers of Aviation Services of the Association of the Helicopter Industry — Vyacheslav Kartsev.

Experts discussed the current industry agenda, taking into account new economic realities and identified promising growth points based on the needs, capacities and potential of the helicopter industry.

The moderator of the plenary session, Ilya Doronov, noted: “No one doubts the importance of helicopter transport for our country. We have too many places that can be reached exclusively by helicopter. One of the most important needs for the industry now is the development of requirements for certification of drone helicopters that could replace large machines during the delivery of goods or mail. The speakers noted that it is very important that all industry participants join forces for the successful development of the domestic helicopter industry”.

On May 20, as part of the business program of the exhibition, a roundtable discussion was held on the topic “Aviation communication equipment and a limited budget. Effective solutions for service life extension and modernization”, organized by A.S. Popov Communications Equipment Plant, JSC (GZAS, JSC). During the event, the problems of operating the radio communication equipment of helicopter technology were discussed, options were proposed for modernizing and extending its service life under the conditions of the operator’s limited budget, as well as possible effective solutions for replacing the existing communication equipment with modern one at minimal costs on the part of the operator.

Nikita Shornikov, one of the organizers of the round table “Aeronautics: New Technologies and Prospects,” spoke about his impressions of the work at the exhibition: and conceptual. Thanks to this roundtable discussion, we got to know many interesting and significant people in the field of aeronautics better. But we also realized that the overwhelming majority of potential customers have very little understanding of the capabilities of lighter-than-air devices, and because of this there is little interest in them. This market is to be brought to a new level, to popularize the possibilities of balloons and airships.

After we were able to organize a meeting of leading experts in the industry and potential customers, being just a group of students, we received support and we are ready to move forward and cope with the task described above“.

Within the first day on the main stage of the International Helicopter Industry Exhibition HeliRussia 2021, a meeting with Anastasia Apaseikina, navigator pilot of the Rosgvardia squadron in Tatarstan took place. Anastasia mastered the Mi-8AMT helicopter with TV3-117 engines. This is the only female in the Russian Guard who operates a helicopter. Anastasia Apaseikina talked with designers who create aircraft engines, talked about her experience in piloting and interacting with aircraft. The discussion was moderated by Aleksey Egorov, television presenter of the Zvezda TV channel.

The Economic Committee of the Helicopter Industry Association was the organizer of the roundtable discussion “Financial Instruments for the Helicopter Industry”. The open discussion “Financial Instruments for the Helicopter Industry” drew a lot of attention to the problems of helicopter operators in raising funds. The annual HeliRussia 2021 roundtable brought together heads of aviation enterprises, leading leasing companies and relevant ministries. The most lively discussion was caused by the issues of the economy of enterprises of the helicopter industry, the availability of banking products, risk assessment in lending, as well as the need to finalize the legislative framework. These topics will be carefully worked out and brought to the state level within the framework of the activities of the Association of the Helicopter Industry“, — noted the moderator of the round table Natalia Trofimova, the Economic Committee of Helicopter Industry Association.

One of the brightest discussions of the program was the “Aviation industry for the development of the Arctic and the Far East” discussion, where participants discussed the prospects for the use of domestic technology, whether the modernization is required for safe and permanent use in these regions, how issues of fuel supply, maintenance, infrastructure, training frames. Note that the topic is extremely relevant, since the development and conservation of the Arctic, and the development of the Far Eastern region have acquired the character of national projects in Russia, which indicates the serious intentions of the state in this region. Obviously, this work cannot be done without the helicopter technology.

In parallel with the discussion, the 13th International Conference “Helicopter Market: Realities and Prospects” was held, moderated by Oleg Panteleev, head of the analytical service of the AviaPort industry agency. Here is what he tells about the main points of the event: “The keynote speech was presented by the Helicopter Industry Association and the AviaPort industry agency. According to the announced data, the Russian Federation continues to actively renew the fleet of light twin-engine helicopters and heavy multi-purpose helicopters: Ansat helicopters are replacing the obsolete Mi-2, and the Mi-8T / Mi-8P are being replaced by the airlines Mi-8AMT and Mi- 8MTV-1. The main driver of the helicopter fleet renewal is the medical aviation development program, however, conditions are gradually being formed for the rejuvenation of the fleet involved in the transportation of passengers and cargo on local air lines.

Deliveries of foreign-made helicopters significantly lag behind the record figures of the middle of the last decade, but in 2020 deliveries exceeded the previous year’s figures. The most popular models are the H125 and H130 from Airbus Helicopters, the most expensive are the AW139 and AW189 from Leonardo.

A negative factor noted in 2020 was the increase in the number of helicopter accidents. In comparison with the relatively prosperous 2019, there is literally a collapse of indicators: five disasters and ten accidents occurred during the year. The majority of accidents occurred in general aviation.

A representative of the Russian Helicopters Holding presented an assessment of the world helicopter market, highlighting the leaders in terms of the quantity and cost of the supplied aircraft. Trends in the change in demand for civilian helicopters were also noted.

The report of the representative of Exclases Holding company was devoted to the helicopter technology of Leonardo Helicopters, the prerequisites and prospects for increasing the helicopter fleet of this manufacturer in Russia”.

The day ended on the main stage of HeliRussia exhibition, where the presentation of the International project “MultProm”, held by the Festival “OT WINTA!” jointly with the film studio “Soyuzmultfilm” took place. The audience was presented with the works of animators on the themes of science and industry. The head of the jury of the competition was Honored Art Worker of Russia, Laureate of the Government Prize, author of the music of many popular Russian cartoons, composer Grigory Gladkov.

The second day of the exhibition

The business program of the second day of the exhibition turned out to be even more diverse.

At 10:00 in parallel, two round tables began on the topics “Radio communication equipment for helicopter technology of civil and state aviation. Current state and prospects” and “Pilot zone of urban airmobility in Skolkovo: status and prospects”, organized by NPP PRIMA and the Skolkovo Foundation, respectively. The experts discussed the acute problems of the industry, possible options for modernization and development prospects.

The Aviation Firefighting Conference was sold out in Conference Room D.The organizer of the conference, the Directorate of HeliRussia 2021, formed an impressive list of expert speakers who, for two and a half hours, discussed issues of monitoring and control of fire hazards in the forest, new and promising developments in the field of fire extinguishing, and, of course, exchanged experiences and stories of successful experimental work. The conference was moderated by Kirill Svyatenko, director of the State Institution “IAC”.

Within the framework of the conference, Ivanovo Parachute Plant “Polet” (Tekhnodinamika Holding) presented a new parachute for Avialesoohrana. It will allow paratroopers-firefighters to land on a limited area of the forest when a fire is detected. Dmitry Glushkov, export director of parachute equipment of Technodinamika, spoke about the new development:

“Poisk” is the name of a new parachute system that will help Avialesoohrana specialists to arrive at the place of fire in hard-to-reach places and quickly eliminate it, was created taking into account the specifics of application in forests. Unlike other models that firefighters work with, “Poisk” has a classic rectangular shape of seven sections and is easier to control — this allows you to safely land at a given point“.

The Moscow Aviation Center quotes Chief Inspector Pilot Viktor Kalika, who, as part of the event, spoke about firefighting technologies in the capital: “In Moscow, as in most megacities, there are many high-rise buildings and the use of aviation has become an effective solution in case of a fire. The advantage of helicopters is the speed of arrival and the ability to immediately begin to eliminate the fire. Today, the Moscow Aviation Center has five fire-fighting helicopters: two Ka-32A, one Mi-26T and two state-of-the-art Ka-32A11BC helicopters. All aircrafts are equipped with special fire extinguishing systems, and the crews are on duty around the clock and are ready at any time to fly out for emergency response”.

The topic of combating fires turned out to be so extensive and relevant that the conference participants could not meet the time allotted for discussion, and continued the dialogue even after the event was finished.

The highlight of the second day was the conference “Additive Technologies in the Aircraft Industry”, which is taking place within the framework of HeliRussia exhibition for the second year in a row. As part of last year’s exhibition, the conference aroused great interest of specialists in the helicopter industry in the development of these technologies, and the organizers could not leave this topic outside the framework of the 2021 business program. Additive technologies are technologies of layer-by-layer building up and synthesis of objects. They are widely used for the so-called fabber technology (3D printing). Moderator of the event Dmitry Trubashevsky shared his impressions of the conference: “Additive technologies are increasingly taking their permanent place in the hearts of innovators and in progressive laboratories of leading enterprises, medical institutions and universities. Aircraft and aerospace are among the most demanding industries for which high product aggregation (reduction of parts in an assembly) is vital, resulting in design, light weight, and the use of modern high performance and metamaterials. (…) Reflecting all the nuances of digital additive technologies within 1.5 hours, which are almost 50 years old, is not an easy task. Nevertheless, continuing the annual tradition of highlighting all the intricacies of additive technologies, the speakers managed to talk about the new facets of this industrial diamond. (…) Despite the difficult epidemiological situation, the meeting of like-minded people was a success, and the topics and answers to questions largely touched on some problems and suggested ways to overcome them”.

Today the knowledge of English is invaluable. It is the “lingua franca” of modern aviation. Two events that day were dedicated to this topic: “English Aviation Seminar” organized by the HIA Technical Committee and a workshop “Corporate Finance in English for the Aviation Industry. Case Study”, organized by EGO Translating SB. The author of the @AeroEnglish Telegram channel, who attended the event, shares his impression of the “English Aviation Seminar”: “I am very sorry that there are very few of such events. Thanks to the organizers for turning their eyes to the English language, although such events are mostly used for advertising purposes.

Our teachers generally have very few opportunities for professional growth. (…) I really liked the performance of Anna Shumaeva. ‘Features of teaching technical English’. (…) At Anna`s report I first saw a systematic approach to teaching this part of a professionally oriented language. It is very good that in addition to textbooks and authentic texts, vocabulary is introduced by lexical clusters. The only thing that confused me was an example from a radio exchange with a violation of the use of standard phraseology (hold)”.

For the first time, within the framework of the HeliRussia exhibition, a discussion was held with the declared name “Digitalization 1.0”, but during the preparation time of the event it was expanded to — “Digitalization 1.0 — 4.0: from automated control systems to digital twins”. The participants of the event discussed the technologies required for the digital transformation of production processes, operation and, above all, the development of high-tech products — the most important stage in terms of ensuring the competitiveness of products. As the center of gravity in competition in the high-tech global market today shifts to the design stage, Smart Digital Twins technology, as well as cross-market and cross-industry knowledge-intensive digital platforms, are becoming key tools, drivers and integrators.

A joint report on the topic “Practical aspects of digitalization of the development and production of automatic control systems” was presented by Andrey Udodov (Deputy Director of the ACS Program — Deputy Chief Designer of JSC UEC-Klimov) and Alexander Krotov (Managing Director of NITs Radiotechniki LLC). In addition to the topic of using modern development technologies, the participants discussed a wider range of related issues: new business processes and business models, new requirements for the role of engineers in an organization and for their competencies.

Alexander Tamm (Head of the department of cross-industry technologies of the NTI SPbU Center “New production technologies”).

It is important to mention the conference called “Modern methods of rescue operations”, which caused an extensive discussion among speakers and participants and lasted more than 4 hours. This conference has been held for several years, and each time it raises the most pressing issues that have been discussed for a long time in the aviation community. The section was moderated by Alexander Panormov, Head of the Search and Rescue Support Service of the Moscow Aviation Center. The 2021 conference brought together an impressive list of speakers, which included experienced rescuers, doctors, designers and other specialists involved in organizing and conducting rescue operations. The participants discussed the specifics of the legal framework and interaction of structures in rescue operations; new technologies and techniques for carrying out rescue operations, peculiarities of interaction between flight personnel and rescuers.

We would also like to mention the event that took place at the stand of UEC JSC and attracted a lot of spectators — the dialogue between the television presenter of the Zvezda TV channel Alexei Yegorov and the aerobatic team of the Russian Air Force Berkuts about the peculiarities of their work.

The theme of the final roundtable discussion of HeliRussia 2021 was “Design and construction of helipads”. The organizer was RVS JSC. The speaker of the event, Sergey Chanushkin (Technical Director of JSC “Navigator”), presented a report on the topic “Landing and surveillance system for operational deployment (FEED)”.

The third day of the exhibition

The third day is traditionally attended by a wide range of people who are not indifferent to aviation. They come to enjoy the exposition with their families and personally touch the exhibits that have also become popular objects for photo sessions. The business program of this day was remembered for two outstanding events.

At 13:00 on the main stage, the awarding ceremony for the winners of “The Beauty of Rotary-wing Aircrafts” competition took place.

This is a traditional photo contest held every year by the Helicopter Industry Association. This time the organizers received 348 works from 5 countries. Guests of HeliRussia 2021 could enjoy an exhibition of 40 best photographs next to the stage. This year’s laureates and winners are:

“Soldier Helicopter” nomination: 3rd place — Dmitry Yakovlev; 2nd place — Ekaterina Bronnikova; 1st place — Alexey Mikheev.
“Working Helicopter” nomination: 3rd place — Stepan Zmachinsky; 2nd place — Ksenia Karpukova; 1st place — Alexander Lvov.
“Helicopter and Nature” nomination: 3rd place — Vladimir Sorokin; 2nd place — Anastasia Tupitsyna; 1st place — Alexander Tereshchenko.
nomination “Helicopter-athlete”: 3rd place — Herman Shevelev; 2nd place — Vladimir Rosha; 1st place — Ilya Kotin.
nomination: “Heart-Klimovsky motor” from UEC-Klimov: Alexander Podolyan.

The prizes for the best photographs of the Ka, Mi and Ansat helicopters were won by Denis Bushkovsky, Alexander Podolyan and Andrey Kudrets respectively. Also, for the first time, the award for the best photograph taken by a woman was presented from ForaFarm, the winner of which became Maria Govorukhina.

At 15:00, the presentation of the Union of Flight Specialties Women “Aviatrix” took place, which this year was called “Raskovtsy in the Regimental Sky” and was timed to coincide with the 800th anniversary of Alexander Nevsky and the 80th anniversary of the formation of 3 women’s air regiments.

The XIV International Exhibition of the Helicopter Industry HeliRussia 2021 has ended. We thank all participants and guests for their interest.

Meanwhile, the exhibition management has already announced the dates for the next HeliRussia, which will take place from May 19 to May 21, 2022 at Crocus Expo. Follow the updates on the official website, Instagram and Facebook.

See you at HeliRussia 2022!