Russian Helicopters (part of State Corporation Rostec) has signed a contract with China’s Jiangsu Baoli for delivery of 4 Ka-32A11BC fire-fighting helicopters in 2016-2017.

Once delivered to China, the Ka-32A11BC helicopters will be used in fire-fighting operations, as well as for patrols and supporting special operations.

‘These helicopters are successfully operated in China. This contract confirms our interest in developing mutually beneficial cooperation, and we plan to continue to grow it through additional deliveries and new projects,’ Russian Helicopters СEO Alexander Mikheev said.

‘Ka-32A11BC helicopters are ideally suited to China’s high mountainous regions and heavily built-up urban centres, since they do not need much space to land and are easy to manoeuvre in mountainous and urban high-rise areas,’ Russian Helicopters Deputy CEO for Marketing and Business Development Alexander Shcherbinin said.

China’s fire-fighting service has considerable experience of using Ka-32A11BC helicopters to fight fires and in search-and-rescue operations. In early January this year the Ka-32A11BC played a crucial role in rescuing passengers from the ice-bound Akademic Shokalsky research ship.

The Ka-32A11BC meets FAR-29 and AP-29 airworthiness standards, and has EASA certification. They are operated successfully in Austria, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Canada, China, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Portugal, Russia, South Korea, Spain, and Switzerland.