On June 19, a video appeared on the web, the footage of which showed a heavily damaged Russian reconnaissance and attack helicopter Ka-52, flying in the NVO zone without a keel, which is designed to provide angle stability slippage of the plane. The American edition of The Drive wrote about it, drawing attention to the characteristics and survivability of the RF Armed Forces rotorcraft.
The publication noted that the unusual design features of the Ka-52 helicopter allow it to continue flying even without a significant part of its tail.
To be fair, it must be said that the Ka-52 attack helicopter has become a kind of trademark of the Russian side in the conflict in Ukraine
- says the material.
Despite the problematic moments, the Ka-52 took on the brunt of the close air support mission, which is currently underway to stop the Ukrainian counteroffensive. At the same time, the helicopter crew shown in the video, the rotorcraft’s unique configuration saved their lives during the flight.
The video, which began circulating on social media today, shows how the Ka-52 flies relatively low, its tail ripped off and the remains of a vertical keel dangling precariously from behind. A photo from the helicopter after landing shows how this part of the tail was rotated more than 90 degrees, but somehow remained attached
- specified in the article.
The publication’s analysts suggested that the mentioned video was probably filmed from the cockpit of another accompanying helicopter. It is not known exactly where and when this happened, but most likely in a southerly direction, as part of the Black Sea coastline is visible.
At the very beginning of the video, several objects fall from the Ka-52. It can be both damaged parts of the empennage and other components. For example, external fuel tanks (PTB). It is possible that when the crew dropped empty PTBs, they were swirled around by an air current and one of them hit the tail of the helicopter. This could cause damage to the rotorcraft, but it is not a fact.
Looking at this video, it is impossible to tell if this is actually the case, although the fact that four objects were clearly dropped suggests that the PTB and rocket modules were dropped. It could also indicate that the problem with the tail happened before the decision to dump the stocks was made.
analysts say.
It was also suggested that the front of the helicopter was also damaged, likely with the windshield torn off and a piece of the forward fuselage missing. It is possible that the Ka-52 was hit by Ukrainian air defenses, which did not cause enough damage to the Russian helicopter to cause it to crash.
Either way, the attack helicopter’s two-man crew has reason to be grateful for their helicopter’s design (if they were flying a different type of helicopter, then they would be much less likely to return to its base). One of the key features of the Ka-52 is the unconventional coaxial main rotor layout, eliminating the need for a tail rotor. For almost any other helicopter, this level of tail damage would be an extremely serious event. In a conventional helicopter, the tail rotor is mounted at the end of the tail boom.
- summarized in US media publication.
At the same time, the Russian military reported that the helicopter had reached its home base safely and needed to be restored.
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