The new turbine Robinson R66 will appear in Russia, with two dealers claiming victory in who wins the race.

On 5th April, Aviamarket took their first R66 in a ceremony at the factory at Torrance in California.  President of the manufacturer Kurt Robinson assesses the Russian market as very promising for private aviation and continually evolving. Sales Director Terry Hane reportedly said that Aviamarket is their leading dealer, as they took 10% of the world’s Robinson sales to the end of 2010.  At the end of the meeting, Kurt Robinson handed over the keys of their new R66 to General Director of Aviamarket, Mikhail Yushkov. Aviamarket believes that the first Russian helicopter R66.

However, Uralhelicom, based in Yekaterinburg, also claims to be the first to present the Russian R66. In an interview with Russia’s Helicopter Industry Association, Uralhelicom’s sales director Alexei Mikhailov says that his company booked an R66 in 2010 with a full deposit, and helicopter R66 in 2010. They go as far as stating that serial number 0027 is allocated to their company, and that it is already shipped as far as Europe, pending transfer to Russia.

Let’s wait 10 days to see which company brings an R66 to HeliRussia!