Maintenance center for Ansat helicopters to open in Mexico in 2020

The Mexican company Craft Avia Center in cooperation with the Russian Helicopters holding company is planning to open a technical maintenance center for Ansat type civilian helicopters in the city of Guadalajara.

“The creation of a maintenance center for Ansat type helicopters in the Mexican city of Guadalajara is in active stage. The project is being implemented by Craft Avia Center in close cooperation with Russian Helicopters. The center will start its operation in 2020", said the Deputy Director General for Aftersales Services of Russian Helicopters, Igor Chechikov.

Representatives of the holding held corresponding negotiations with their Mexican partners during the third international aerospace show FAMEX 2019, held in the Santa Lucia air base close to Mexico’s capital. With the support of Russian Helicopters, the center will be equipped with the required documentation and technology. Training of Mexican technical service engineers is also planned. The first Ansat helicopter will be delivered to Mexico for Craft Avia Center in 2019.

“We have long and successful relations of cooperation in the field of helicopter construction with our Mexican partners. Around 50 Russian-made Mi-17 type helicopters are successfully operated here. Rostec is focused on both strengthening our cooperation with Mexico and developing long-term relations with the whole region of Latin America. Creating the maintenance center for Russian Ansat helicopter is a significant step forwards in this path”, pointed out Viktor Kladov, Director for International Cooperation and Regional Policy of Rostec. He added: “I’m confident that the maintenance center will both strengthen and expand our cooperation in the field of aviation, as well as make the light Ansat helicopter more attractive to potential customers in both Mexico and Latin America in general”.

During 2014-2015, Russian Helicopters conducted successful overhauls of 19 helicopters operated by the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense. Currently the company is providing comprehensive after-sales support maintaining the whole fleet of Mi-17 helicopters operated in the territory of Mexico.

The light multi-purpose helicopter Ansat, which has the largest cabin within its class, is actively used by the Russian air medical services. This twin-engine helicopter has compact size and does not require a large landing area. It can also be used for normal passenger and VIP transport, cargo delivery and environmental monitoring. Ansat has been successfully tested for high-altitude operations, confirming that it can be used in mountainous areas with altitudes up to 3,500 meters.

The multi-purpose helicopter Mi-17-1V is one of the modifications of the Mi-17 type, designed by the Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant, a subsidiary of the Russian Helicopters holding company. Good performance characteristics, ease of operation and reliability have made these helicopters popular throughout the world. Mi-17-1V has a top speed of 250 km/h and maximum flight range of over 600 kilometers. It can carry up to 37 paratroopers. The civilian variant is widely used for cargo and passenger transport, firefighting and rescue operations.

The international aerospace show FAMEX takes place in Mexico once every two years. Russian Helicopters is a regular participant of the exhibition.