Mi-10 helicopter: description with photo, history of creation, specifications and application

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

As practice shows, very often military developments eventually begin to be actively used not only for their intended purpose, but also in the civilian sphere. A vivid example of this is the history of the creation and operation of one of the winged machines called the Mi-10 crane helicopter. We will talk about this interesting aircraft in detail in the article.

Start

February 20, 1958, the Soviet leadership issued a very important task to engineers - to create a "flying crane" that would be able to lift loads weighing up to 12 tons and transport them over a distance of 250 kilometers. At the same time, the indicator of the maximum carrying capacity should have been equal to 15 tons.

In the process of forming the terms of reference, the Soviet ministers introduced a clause that the Mi-10 helicopter was to become a transporter of cruise and ballistic missiles.

For long-distance flights, the machine could be equipped with auxiliary fuel tanks. It is worth noting that it was planned to transport the goods on the described helicopter by twoways: using highly reliable hydraulic grippers and using a special platform mounted on the landing gear.

First flight

For the first time, the Mi-10 helicopter, the photo of which is given a little below, took off from the ground in 1961. Just a year later, the flying machine was able to set a world record - it lifted a load weighing 15 tons to a height of more than 2 kilometers. And a year later, the entire project was in jeopardy, as the government refused to transport military missiles by helicopter due to the high degree of risk. At that time, 24 Mi-10s had already been produced.

Tragedy

In May 1961, during a flight from Kazan to Moscow, Mi-10 helicopter number 04101 crashed. The thing is that at a certain point in time, the crew discovered a sharp drop in oil pressure in the main gearbox, and commander Anufriev decided to make an emergency landing. Seeing a lawn on the edge of the swamp, the pilot gave the command to the navigator to inspect the site. Klepikov (surname of the assistant) determined that the left landing gear was located directly above the swamp, and therefore did not give the go-ahead for landing. As a result, the team was forced to look again for a new landing site. At the same time, the machine, in the process of horizontal movement, was completely without gearbox lubrication, the flight speed increased greatly. Ultimately, the helicopter flew into a hillock already on the ground, rolled over and caught fire. Only Klepikov managed to escape death, who escaped with smallbodily injury. Among the dead was the commander, who died already within the walls of the district hospital, the second pilot, on-board technician, technician.

An hour after the tragedy, Mil personally learned about the incident, and he, along with a military representative and an engineer from the Air Force Research Institute, went to the scene. In the process of studying the situation, it was revealed that the cause of the accident was a breakdown of the oil pump in the main gearbox.

Soon, the second prototype 04102 was involved in flight tests. This Mi-10 helicopter, whose history still has more positive moments than negative ones, received a modified gearbox oil system, and it was also equipped with double wheels on racks. Special cables were mounted on the fuselage near the pilots' seats, designed for an emergency escape of pilots from the cockpit to the ground in the event of a force majeure situation.

Demo

On July 9, 1961, the Mi-10 helicopter, the description of which is of interest to many people even today, was demonstrated to the general public for the first time during the celebration of the Day of the USSR Air Force. The car was presented to the audience at the air parade, and the aircraft itself brought the house of the geological group to the stands of the guests, in which they later opened a retail outlet.

On September 23, the crew led by pilot Zemskov was able to lift a cargo weighing 15103 kilograms on the Mi-10 to a height of 2200 meters, which set an absolute world record, broken on the same day by another group of pilots.

Finalverification

During state tests, the Mi-10 helicopter, the characteristics of which will be given below, was repeatedly tested for the possibility of transporting various cargoes both inside it and outside using special mounts and platforms. During these manipulations, the helicopter transported trucks, buses, railway containers. And even though many of these objects created aerodynamic problems for the helicopter during flight, the machine was still able to produce high-quality, fast and safe transportation.

Ultimately, the state commission issued a positive response to the helicopter flights. Officially confirmed the transportation of items weighing no more than 15 tons. However, at the same time, some shortcomings of the machine were also identified, among which are:

• Great vibration while flying at low speeds.
• Poor operation of the television system installed to monitor the loading/unloading of items. Initially, she was supposed to help the pilots in this matter, but in reality, the pilots were forced to stick their heads out of the cockpit windows to control these operations.
• Long landing gear due to their size caused the helicopter to sway during landing or takeoff.

Design features

The Mi-10 helicopter, whose speed can reach 235 km/h, was produced according to a single-rotor scheme. There is also a steering screw. The number of landing gear is four. The fuselage of the car is semi-monocoque with a cabin for twopilots. The cabin itself has good visibility in all directions.

The cargo compartment is made quite large and has a volume of 60 cubic meters. On the right side of the car there is a door with a winch, with the help of which they lift loads weighing up to 200 kilograms. A gondola is mounted under the cockpit, with the help of which the cargo is mounted. It allows pilots to clearly control this process.

The main rotor of the helicopter is made with five blades, and its diameter is 35 meters. The blades are all-metal rectangular in shape and are equipped with an anti-icing system and a spar damage alarm.

The tail rotor has four blades and a diameter of 6.3 meters. Each blade is made with a variable thickness and in the form of a trapezoid. Material: delta wood with steel tip.

To maintain the horizontal position of the cockpit on the ground, the right landing gear was made 300 millimeters shorter than the left.

Starting from 1975, all helicopters received a system for damping vibrations and vibrations of the load attached to the external sling.

International recognition

In 1965, the Mi-10 helicopter was demonstrated at the XXVI aerospace show in the city of Le Bourget. But before that, the car overcame the airspace of six European countries and completed refueling in 6 cities of the continent. As a result, the helicopter covered a distance of 7 thousand kilometers to its destination. At the exhibition itself, the Mi-10 carried out transportation on the platform of the LAZ bus, which delighted the public. Also waspresented to the audience and a film about a helicopter.

Power plant

The Mi-10 helicopter, whose engine was developed by P. A. Solovyov, has autonomous oil systems and oil coolers. The flying machine is equipped with two gas turbine engines, each with a capacity of 5500 horsepower. At the same time, if necessary, a flying crane is able to move in the air on one of the engines.

Application

In general, the Mi-10 helicopter, whose work was sometimes accompanied by some difficulties, turned out to be “superfluous” in the Air Force. And all because in the course of its long-term operation, everyone forgot about its original purpose, which so changed its design. The rather narrow specialization of the helicopter required pilots to work out special tactics and control style, which called into question the combat value of the developed machine.

Nevertheless, the Mi-10 was for some time in service with the Luhansk, Alexandria, Dzhambul helicopter detachments and was even used for civilian purposes, for example, for transporting power transmission poles.

By the way, the Mi-10K helicopter was created for use in the national economy, which had a slightly shortened landing gear and an auxiliary suspended cabin in a gondola under the nose of the fuselage. In this cockpit, the pilot could clearly see the cargo and simultaneously control the entire machine.

It is impossible to ignore the fact that the helicopter was even involved in the fighting in Afghanistan and received several times serious damage from shelling.

Models

• Mi-10GR - air direction finder, equipped in 1970.
• Mi-10PP is a jammer. His task was to counteract the enemy's radar.
• Mi-10R is a record. It has set several world-class achievements.
• Mi-10RVK - carried the 9K74 missile system.
• Mi-10UPL - carrier of the universal field laboratory.

Parameters

The Mi-10 helicopter was endowed by its creators with the following indicators:

• Crew - three people.
• Normal capacity is 12,000 kg.
• The weight of the load on the suspension is 8000 kg.
• The length of the car is 41.89 meters.
• Fuselage - 32, 86 m.
• Height with tail rotor - 9.9 meters.
• The area covered by the rotor - 962 sq. m.
• Car clearance - 3.73 meters.
• Chassis track - 7.55 meters.
• The weight of the empty helicopter is 27,100 kg.
• Normal takeoff weight - 38,000 kg.
• Maximum takeoff weight is 43,550 kg.
• The maximum allowable mass of fuel is 8230 kg.
• The volume of fuel tanks is 10,620 liters.
• Engine type – TVD D-25V.
• The speed limit is 235 km/h.
• Cruising speed with a mass of up to 38,000 kg - 220 km/h.
• The maximum vertical lift speed is 6.3 m/s.
• Practical flight range - 250 km.
• Flight distance - 695 km.
• Max flight altitude is 3000 meters.

Conclusion

Exotic in many aspects, the Mi-10 could still beinvolved in solving many issues over a fairly long period of time. We must not forget that the helicopter was created on the basis of the Mi-6, which also made some adjustments to its design. In general, Mil and his team received state awards for the development of the machine, and the chief engineer himself was also awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor.

An amazing fact: in 1982, in the city of Yakutsk, a 241-meter high television tower was installed in just five days. The complexity of the operation was that all the components of the tower were assembled thanks to the Mi-10. The high- altitude builders were delighted with the machine.

In total, 55 of them were created during the entire existence of the helicopter. However, only one copy was sold abroad.