Military Power

The KA-50 is a state-of-the-art and incredibly powerful battle helicopter which is in limited service with the Russian Air Force. This aircraft is not actively fielded and is restricted to use during weapon tests and training. Only a handful of prototypes exist, and it has not yet been approved for full-scale production. There are two versions of the Hokum. The Ka-50 Hokum-A is a single seat close support helicopter and the Ka-52 Hokum-B two seat trainer and combat version. The coaxial, contrarotating (spin in opposite directions), three-blade main rotors are widely separated with swept-back tips, and there is no tail rotor. The equally tapered, short, stubby, weapon-carrying wings with end plates are mounted on the streamlined fuselage, which tapers to the front and rear. The fuselage, which is flat-bottomed except for the underbelly gun pod and sensor, features a flat plated glassed-in canopy. The tail is thick with a tapering tail boom and back-tapered tail fin with a square tip. The tail flats are high-mounted on the tail boom with end plates, and located forward of the fin. Twin turboshaft engines are mounted high on the fuselage above the stubby wings, with semicircular air intakes and exhausts that are turned outward (odd-looking, huh?).
The helicopter has a number of unique characteristics including single seat to increase combat and flight characteristics and reduce operational costs. It was designed for remote operations, and not to need ground maintenance facilities for 2 weeks. The airframe is 35% composite materials with a central support beam made of kevlar-nomex that protects critical systems and ammunition stores. The fully armored pilot's cabin can withstand 23mm gunfire, and the cockpit glass 12.7mm gunfire. The recently developed Zvezda K-37-800 pilot ejection system functions at any altitude, and enables a successful ejection at low altitude and maximum speed.

The Kamov Ka-50 Chernaya Akula (Black Shark) began life in 1977 under the supervision of Mikheyyev as a rival to the Mil Mi-28. The first prototype took to the air on 17 June 1982 and after trials, in 1986, the Ka-50 was actually judged to be the winner of the competition between the two rival Helicopters.

However it would be the Mi-28 that would ultimately receive the production order from the Russian Air Force.

By the mid 90s the Ka-50-2 with Israeli avionics would be offered to China, India and Turkey.