MOSCOW. April 16 (Interfax) - A contract for the delivery of a hundred modernized Mil Mi-28NM Night Hunter helicopters to the Russian Defense Ministry might be signed at the Army 2019 forum in June, an informed source told Interfax on Thursday.
"A contract might be signed at the Army 2019 forum [due on June 25-30]," the source said.
Russian Helicopters Director Andrei Boginsky told Interfax, in turn, that the holding is ready to sign the contract as soon as the client is ready.
"We're ready but there are procedures to comply with. We have provided all the design and operational documents necessary for starting the work," Boginsky said in response to the question of when the contract might be signed.
The final value of the contract will depend on the list of additional equipment and armaments, which may vary consistent with the client's wishes, he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that the Russian Armed Forces would procure a hundred modernized Mil Mi-28NM combat helicopters by 2028.
"The fleet of army-aviation helicopters should promptly be further equipped with modern defense airborne systems with improved specifications and the latest weapons with an increased range. By 2028, the troops should have received 100 Mi-28NM upgraded combat helicopters," Putin said at a defense meeting.
The newspaper Kommersant reported the delivery cost of the new combat helicopters on Thursday. According to a source in the aviation industry, the net cost of a hundred Mi-28NM Night Hunters and 114 Ka-52 Alligators is 180-190 billion rubles.
The Mi-28NM is the latest modification of the Mi-28N Night Hunter helicopter. Work began on this helicopter in 2009. It was reported that it would be equipped with a totally new locator, allowing for round vision, new high-precision weapons, a modern command system, and a "glass cabin" having practically no mechanical gauges or classic control panels.