Deputy Prime Minister - Minister for Strategic Industries Oleg Uruskyi took part in the first testing of blades of Ukrainian production, which began on the territory of the Motor Sich Flax Testing Complex. In particular, two sets of blades were tested on MI-24 and MSB-8 helicopters. Their production was organized by Motor Sich JSC.

"Indeed, this is a landmark event for Ukraine, as it enters TOP-5 countries in the world that produce blades for heavy helicopters! This means that we have new opportunities for the Ukrainian army aviation and prospects for the development of export markets," stressed Deputy Prime Minister Oleg Uruskyi.

According to the company's president Viacheslav Boguslaiev, the company has been working on the domestic production of blades for the past few years. In total, it is planned to launch into serial production about 60 sets of blades per year, and in 2021 as a pilot project - 20.

During the flights with the use of Ukrainian blades, the pilots demonstrated control of helicopters at deep turns and combat maneuvering. As a result, in the air you could see a turn with a roll to 60 degrees, maneuver "slide" and turn on the hill.

"The old blades have already exhausted their resource. Now, for the first time, Ukraine has the opportunity to produce blades on its own. This opens a new era for our helicopters, which will help us fly, learn and perform combat missions," Oleg Uruskyi summed up.

The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Ruslan Khomchak also took part in this event. He stressed that all MI-24 helicopters, which are 4 brigades of army aircraft, were waiting for these blades. "Today we saw the first helicopters with Ukrainian blades that took off. We already have joint plans with Motor Sich JSC, and we hope that in 2021 we will be able to seriously improve the fleet of combat helicopters," said Ruslan Khomchak.